Britain’s domestic intelligence service MI5 will oversee a new agency tasked with helping local organizations combat Chinese cyber-spies and other threats]
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Monday announced the National Protective Security Agency (NPSA) as part of a refresh of the government’s security strategy known as the “Integrated Review”.
The refresh included the replacement of the UK’s Conflict, Stability and Security Fund with an Integrated Security Fund that’s funded to the tune of £1 billion to “deliver on the core objectives of the Integrated Review at home and around the world, including in economic and cyber security, counter terrorism and human rights.”
According to MI5, the NPSA will provide cyber security training and advice to businesses, schools, and nonprofit organizations while working with the police to boost “protections against terrorist attacks.”
The NPSA will also collaborate with other government agencies including the National Cyber Security Centre and the National Counter Terrorism Security Office to provide “holistic protective security advice.”
“Science, technology, and academia are as much on the front lines of national security as the UK’s critical national infrastructure,” security minister Tom Tugendhat explained in a statement.
“We know that hostile actors are trying to steal intellectual property from UK institutions in order to harm our country,” Tugendhat added. “The National Protective Security Authority will play a crucial role in helping businesses and universities better protect themselves and maintain their competitive advantage.”
Last year, MI5 and the FBI warned UK and US academics and business leaders
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