Ministry of Defence responds to threat of cyberattack on HMS Queen Elizabeth
The Ministry has dismissed claims published in the Guardian that the warship running outdated software is vulnerable to ransomware attack
The Ministry of Defence has responded to claims made in a report by the Guardian which had stated that the HMS Queen Elizabeth, the largest warship in Royal Navy, could be vulnerable to a cyberattack. The report, published a day after the £3.5bn aircraft carrier went on its maiden voyage, highlighted that certain systems on the ship were running outdated Windows XP software that was exploited in the WanaCry ransomware attack which had previously crippled UK’s healthcare system (NHS).
A Ministry of Defence spokesperson told us: “While we don’t comment on the specific systems used by our ships and submarines, we have absolute confidence in the security we have in place to keep the Royal Navy’s largest and most powerful ship safe and secure. We take cyber security extremely seriously and the UK has doubled its cyber investment to £1.9 billion.”
The Guardian reported that during a tour of the warship, screens running the 2001 version of Windows operating systems were spotted. This was the same OS that was previously targeted in the WanaCry ransomware attack, using NHS hacking tools released by the group Shadow Brokers. The report also raised concerns about the security of UK’s nuclear submarine system, Trident.
The HMS Queen Elizabeth, unveiled on June 26th, is the largest warship built by the UK, capable of holding up to forty aircraft. Defence Secretary Michael Fallon, commenting on the lead aircraft carrier’s maiden voyage, called it “a historic moment for the UK”. He added: “HMS Queen Elizabeth is an enduring example of British imagination, ingenuity, invention that will help keep us safe for decades to come. For the next fifty years she will deploy around the world, demonstrating British power and our commitment to confronting the emerging challenges from a dangerous world. The whole country can be proud of this national achievement.”
In response to the Guardian’s claims, the commander air on the Queen Elizabeth, Mark Deller, argued that the systems were installed when the ship was being built more than a decade ago, with spare capacity to modify and upgrade. “Whatever you see in the pictures, I think you will probably find we will be upgrading to whatever we want to have in due course. It might have already happened but I can’t tell you.”
The Ministry of Defence spokesperson also added that the carrier was not affected by the recent ransomware attack and that its operational IT systems are not connected to the internet. “Considerable resource is dedicated to assessing cyber threats and we continue to apply any necessary mitigations to combat threats. We do not comment on speculation about future refits.”
Concerns with the ship come in the aftermath of a large-scale cyberattack on the Houses of Parliament which caused systems to be shut down over the weekend. A statement by the Speaker of the House, Lord Fowler, in the aftermath of the attack, stated that “closer investigation confirmed that hackers were carrying out a sustained and determined attack on all parliamentary user accounts in an attempt to identify weak passwords and gain access to users’ emails.”
He also confirmed that the Digital Service for the House had been working with the National Cyber Security Centre to identify and mitigate the attack, and secure all systems from potential vulnerabilities. A spokesperson for the National Cyber Security Centre further added: “The NCSC is aware of an incident and is working around the clock with the UK Parliamentary digital security team to understand what has happened and advise on the necessary mitigating actions.”
The HMS Queen Elizabeth is expected to begin trials in the North Sea this summer with a crew of 700, increasing to the full capacity of 1,600 as operations begin. It was worked on by a construction crew of 10,000 over six build yards and assembled in Rosyth. The HMS Prince of Wales, the sister ship of Queen Elizabeth’s sister ship, has also been completed and is currently being outfitted for operations. Both aircraft carriers will be carrying F-35B Lightning aircrafts and will make up the UK naval defence’s Carrier Strike capability.
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