- More than 100,000 malicious emails have been detected and blocked by HMRC
- These were sent between November 2021 and September 2024
- Critical infrastructure remains the first target for cybercriminals
More than 105,000,000 malicious emails have been blocked by HMRC in the past three years, said new research, describing cyber-men’s climbing against the British government and critical infrastructure.
The news, obtained by a request for freedom of information (Faith) by the reflection group of rue Parliament, shows an increase between November 2022 and October 2023 on 40,346,532, a significant increase compared to nearly 24,000,000 blocked during the same period of the previous year.
Critical infrastructure proves to be a very attractive target for cybercriminals, in particular given the urgency of the services they provide and the increase in geopolitical tensions. The consequences of attacks against these providers can be severe, even fatal, and more than two fifths of critical infrastructure have undergone a cyber violation to date.
A change of gateway
According to demand, HMRC has changed its supplier from its “Gateway” email which blocks and categorizes emails, which means that it can no longer decompose information into malware, phishing, spam or other categories.
The government is grateful that this is an urgent problem, the new cybersecurity bill presented to protect critical infrastructure by providing essential IT services, covering more than 1,000 suppliers.
This comes after senior security officials have labeled “vulnerable” shocking “Great Britain to cyber attacks, pointing services such as the NHS and the national electrical network – both using third -party suppliers who are not subject to the strict security regulations that public institutions must follow.
“These figures show how implacable cybercriminals are when it comes to targeting government institutions,” said Andy Ward, SVP International to absolute security.
“The security teams must be able to isolate and immediately stop compromised systems to prevent attacks from spreading. Cyber-menices becoming more sophisticated, it is more important than protecting government services in the United Kingdom.”
