UK AI minister warns of imminent cyber breach risk for public and private sectors

UK AI minister Kanishka Narayan said on Tuesday that a serious cyber breach is “extremely likely” in both the public and private sectors, and that neither is prepared, according to Bloomberg. Narayan spoke at a Bloomberg Tech event in London, warning that cybersecurity risks are immediate and growing, especially as hackers use AI tools to speed up attacks.

His comments followed a statement from Richard Horne, head of the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre, who said British firms are “willfully blind” to threats from Russia, Iran and China. A suspected hack affecting supermarket freezers across Europe this week also impacted some UK firms, Horne said.

Narayan pointed to the government’s response: an extra £120M for the AI Security Institute, which tests leading AI models. The Institute recently regained access to new US AI models before public release, after a period when the White House restricted access. Narayan would not confirm how long this access will last, noting that guarantees are difficult in AI.