UK takes 'defence in depth' approach to cyber security

In the wake of this week's attack on French government servers, where hackers successfully gained access to files on the G20 summit in Paris, a spokesman for the Cabinet Office said that it would study lessons learned from the attack.

"We will be looking to see what the French government does to bolster its defences in response to the attacks," he said.

He also gave details of the UK government's defences against this type of attack, explaining that it relies on a "layered" approach.

"HMG takes an in-depth approach to protecting government systems with layers of of security measures that include personnel, procedural and technical approaches which, when properly applied, reduce the risk of attacks."

The spokesman also clarified the role of GCHQ, whose remit is set to expand to include the defence of a critical private infrastructure.

"GCHQ, through its Computer Emergency Response Team, GovCertUK, provides a single point for reporting government network security incidents, issuing security alerts and assisting in resolving serious security incidents. Where appropriate this information is shared with the relevant law enforcement agencies."

The cyber attack suffered by the French government affected more than 150 of the finance ministry's 170,000 computers.

An official complaint has been filed with French courts, and the matter has been taken up by the secret service.