Government plans internet terrorism protection

The government is to seek industry advice about how to secure internet infrastructure in the face of terrorist threats, as part of measures to update its contingency planning to be released on Thursday.

The Civil Contingency Bill, which has been published in draft format, is intended to provide a modern framework for protecting critical parts of the UK's infrastructure from attacks. This includes electronic networks, as well as water and electricity systems.

As part of its proposals, the government will ask industry experts how best it can ensure that vital communication networks cannot be brought down.

'We want utilities to take a view on how they can best provide resilience, and have the ability to bounce back quickly in the event of an attack,' said a government source.

The Home Secretary will be given the final say on when to invoke the powers, but is only likely to do so if an attack was on a 'massive scale'.

'We're not just talking about a virus or denial of service attack, but when it is so serious that it reduces the ability to govern,' said the government source.

In the event of a serious damage to networks, there needs to be a co-ordinating body overseeing the restoration of services, and identifying which services are prioritised, said Roland Perry, director of public policy, at the London Internet Exchange.

'Already much of the work on this has been agreed on a voluntary basis,' he said.

He said that if internet connections are seen as vital infrastructure, essential services may be restored before businesses.

'Clearly in these situations, service providers will give priority to essential services,' said Perry.

The Civil Contingency Bill also contains formal procedures for ensuring police can investigate any attack.

The legislation will replace the Emergency Powers Act 1920.