Osborne Doubles U.K. Cyber Defense Funds as Other Spending Cut
- $2.9 billion to be spent countering extremist use of Internet
- Chancellor refuses to be drawn on budget for U.K. policing
Cyber Terror Becomes a Real Threat for Governments
Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne announced he’ll double funding to strengthen the U.K.’s cyber defenses, while refusing to confirm that budget cuts to be announced next week would spare Britain’s police forces, as Europe braces for further attacks from Islamist extremists.
The U.K. will spend 1.9 billion pounds ($2.9 billion) over five years countering Islamic State’s use of the Internet for planning, propaganda and online attacks, Osborne said on Tuesday in a speech at Government Communications Headquarters, the U.K. communications-intelligence agency. He also announced the development of an “offensive” capability so Britain can counter-attack against hackers, terrorists, criminals and rogue states.