Chief of MI6 Alex Younger will be giving a speech today in which he is reportedly planning to warn Russia not to underestimate the UK's cyber security expertise.In today's increasingly digital age, the threats facing nations are less about overt military action and more about cyber threats from rogue actors and foreign nations. State-sponsored hacking programmes are nothing new, but the technology available to virtual assailants now includes powerful artificial intelligence systems, huge data centres, and even the political destabilisation effects of fake news.
MI6 Chief Alex Younger is planning to give a speech to students at St Andrew’s University today addressing each the new threats that face the UK and how they can be tackled. He is expected to specifically call out Russia for its recent attempted assassination of former agent Sergei Skripal on UK soil, and to "urge Russia or any other state intent on subverting our way of life not to underestimate our determination and our capabilities, or those of our allies."
Other topics on the agenda include the need for the UK to recruit younger agents and focus on emerging technologies. Younger believes that the UK will need "fourth generation espionage" that takes advantage of technologies such as artificial intelligence, robotics, nanotechnology, and quantum computing.
Source: The Guardian,
The Telegraph,
Belfast Telegraph
About the author
Brendan is a Sync NI writer with a special interest in the gaming sector, programming, emerging technology, and physics. To connect with Brendan, feel free to send him an email or follow him on Twitter.
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