The British ministers are afraid of the fact that China can unleash a dangerous online attack on Britain, reports say. The potential attack, which is being dubbed as the 'cyber-9/11', can happen amid the rise in tensions between Beijing and London, they say.
As reported by the Daily Mail, senior sources mentioned that a series of diplomatic disagreements regarding Hong Kong, China-based tech giant Huawei and the coronavirus or COVID-19 situation can pave the way to an all-out attack by hackers backed by China.
UK Worried About Chinese Cyber Attacks
The warnings come at a time when the British government is getting ready to formally make an announcement that it is going to block Huawei in its efforts of helping build UK's superfast 5G mobile network.
After Australia took a similar step, it was hit by large-scale cyber attacks. Moreover, the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has also angered the Chinese Communist Party with his standpoint about the clampdown on Hong Kong's freedom and also the calls for an inquiry into the true origin of the deadly novel coronavirus, which, many suspects have accidentally leaked out from a lab in China's Wuhan.
The security chiefs are worried about state-sponsored attacks that will cripple the computer networks, which will lead to blackouts of phones and power putting a halt on the activities at hospitals, government, and businesses.
Huawei Decision on July 14
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has briefed the British Prime Minister about the assault Australia witnessed that he mentioned had targeted 'government, industry, political organizations, education, health, essential service providers and operators of other critical infrastructure' last month.
Even though the government of Australia did not publicly blame China for the attack, it is understood the officials concluded that the assault was connected to the rising tensions with Beijing, in spite of China denying any involvement.
The most senior security advisers of the British Prime Minister are going to meet on July 14 to make a decision about the fate of Huawei in the UK, as the officials draw plans of cutting the Chinese company out of the fifth-generation mobile networks. Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden has promised that the final decision will be mentioned after the meeting on Tuesday.
