Summary

  • Deputy PM Oliver Dowden tells Parliament that China is responsible for “malicious cyber campaigns” targeting the Electoral Commission and MPs

  • He says two people and a company linked to the Chinese state have been sanctioned by the UK government and China's ambassador will be summoned

  • The attacks on the Electoral Commission took place in August 2021 but were only revealed last year. At the time it said the attacks had no impact on elections

  • China says it "strongly opposes" the accusations, calling them "completely fabricated and malicious slanders"

  • Earlier MPs who are thought to have been targeted in cyber-attacks by Beijing called for the UK government to label China as a threat

  • Prime Minister Rishi Sunak calls China "the greatest state-based threat to our economic security" and says "it's right we take measures to protect ourselves"

  • You can watch the latest from Westminster live at the top of this page by clicking the play button

Live Reporting

Edited by Jack Burgess and Marita Moloney

  1. Analysis

    Spying – ‘the second oldest profession’

    Frank Gardner
    BBC News, Security Correspondent

    Spying – or ‘espionage’ to give it its proper title – has been around for centuries.

    It has often been called ‘the second oldest profession’ after prostitution, since both get a mention in the Old Testament.

    It was rife in Elizabethan times and it is rife today but different countries do it in different ways.

    The US has a vast capability in electronic eavesdropping, run largely, but not exclusively, by its National Security Agency (NSA).

    Its ability to intercept terrorist communications has stopped numerous plots.

    The UK also invests heavily in so-called ‘Signals Intelligence’ (SIGINT) but its Secret Intelligence Service, better known as MI6, specialises in Human Intelligence (HUMINT), ie. recruiting agents or informants inside hostile countries or organisations like ISIS.

    Russia’s spies have had a somewhat clumsy record recently, notably their disastrous miscalculation that their invasion of Ukraine would succeed within days.

    China, for its part, takes espionage to an industrial level. In its drive to become the foremost economic power in the world it has literally armies of operatives working in both cyberspace and the physical world, scooping up every possible bit of data and detail they can.

    This can be as trivial as the personal details of MPs to the blueprints for aerospace parts.

    The Chief of MI6 recently revealed that China was their top priority, while the boss of MI5, the Security Service, said more than 20,000 people in the UK had been covertly approached online by Chinese spies.

  2. China regards spy claims as politically motivated

    Kerry Allen
    BBC Monitoring, Chinese Media Analyst

    It’s very common for Chinese audiences to see articles on Western countries accusing China of spying - and suggesting its related technologies pose a national security threat.

    These claims are often officially dismissed as “groundless”.

    Today, audiences are reading via the national Global Times newspaper that the British media is accusing China of having a pedigree for foreign cyber-attacks.

    It’s one of the most popular talking points on Chinese social network Weibo, and one user has commented: “The UK is one of the key sources of global rumours and slander against China!”

    Over the years, China has repeatedly stressed that, on the contrary, it is one of the biggest victims of cyber-attacks, and this was a comment reiterated today in Beijing’s regular foreign ministry press conference.

    In the last week too, Chinese outlets have reported that Russia is no stranger to cyber-attacks, and “suffered tens of thousands” amid its presidential election.

    Foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said that “tracing the source of cyber-attacks is highly complex and sensitive” and he stressed that “cybersecurity issues should not be politicised”.

  3. Investigation has been complex and sensitive - Downing Street

    Let's bring you some more comments coming to us from Downing Street.

    The prime minister's official spokesperson says the UK has worked "closely" with its allies to identify the state behind a 2021 cyber attack on the Electoral Commission.

    Asked about the length of time between the attack, which took place in 2021 and came to light in 2023, and the announcement expected later today, the spokesman explained the investigation had been "complex and sensitive".

    The spokesperson added the UK had its "eyes wide open when it comes to China".

    "The Integrated Review Refresh set out that the UK regards China under the Chinese Communist Party as an epoch-defining challenge and as the biggest state-based threat to our economic security," Rishi Sunak's spokesperson said earlier.

    "In relation to specific examples, we've used our new national security investment powers to block investment from China into sensitive technology sectors like semiconductors.

    "Our National Security Act and others means we can take any steps that we need to, for example removing Huawei from our telecoms network."

    China is 'greatest threat to UK's economic security' - Sunak

  4. Seven things to know this lunchtime

    The British Union Jack flag and the Chinese Wu Xing Hong Qi flag line The MallGetty Images

    Let's give you a quick round up of what has been happening so far today ahead of an expected cyber security announcement in the Commons:

    • Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden is expected to tell Parliament China is behind a series of cyber-attacks on MPs and the elections watchdog
    • The attacks - in which the personal details of potentially millions of voters were accessed - took place in August 2021, but only came to light last year
    • Former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith, ex-minister Tim Loughton and the SNP's Stewart McDonald are thought to have been targeted
    • The trio are being briefed by the head of parliamentary security and are expected to hold their own press conference this afternoon
    • Oliver Dowden will update the House of Commons on the ongoing threat Beijing poses - from around 15:30 GMT
    • Earlier this morning, Rishi Sunak said China represents an "epoch-defining challenge" and the "greatest state-based threat" to the UK's economic security
    • But, in response to all the media reports a spokesman for China's foreign ministry - Lin Jian - warned against smearing other nations
  5. Analysis

    How did the hackers get in?

    Joe Tidy
    Cyber correspondent

    Unsurprisingly the government is not going into details about how hackers carried out this mammoth hack that shocked the cyber world.

    A good bet in the vast majority of cases is that they would have sent an email tricking an employee into accidentally downloading a booby-trapped piece of software: “Download this file to access the latest offers” type thing.

    Sometimes they can be more sophisticated and targeted at a specific person: “Hi Joe, Download this document to access your latest pension update” for example.

    It’s also possible that attackers got into email servers directly through a known weakness in Microsoft Exchange – a popular storage system used by many organisations that was known to be weak and infiltrated by Chinese hackers previously.

    We also know from a whistle-blower who spoke to the BBC last year that the Electoral Commission had failed basic cyber security tests around the time that hackers got inside computer systems which may have contributed to it’s weak defences against such attacks. "It builds a picture of a weak posture and a probable failure to govern and manage", one cyber expert commented on the news.

  6. UK government slow to call out China - campaigner

    Iain Duncan Smith, campaigner Luke de Pulford and MP Stephen Kinnock attend a rally for Hong Kong democracy at the Marble Arch in June 2021Getty Images

    Iain Duncan Smith, campaigner Luke de Pulford and MP Stephen Kinnock attend a rally for Hong Kong democracy at the Marble Arch in June 2021

    As we've been reporting, the MPs thought to be victims of cyber-attacks are members of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China which scrutinises, and often criticises, the activities of Beijing.

    Its executive director, Luke De Pulford, says he wants to see "targeted sanctions on those responsible".

    "But we also need support for members of Parliament and those who are targeted by Beijing. This is pretty serious stuff," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

    "Even last week, MPs and peers who were sanctioned by Beijing back in 2021 requested a meeting with the prime minister to talk about the lack of support they have received.

    "These kind of attacks have been going on for a very long time.

    The most interesting thing, I think, is it has taken at least two years to call it out. This happened in 2021 which indicates the government was a little bit reluctant to say China had actually done this.”

  7. Who are the MPs thought to have been targeted by China?

    Tory MP Tim Loughton speaks in the House of CommonsPA Media

    Tory MP Tim Loughton is thought to be among those targeted

    As we've been reporting, several MPs who have been critical of Beijing are thought to have also been targeted in cyber-attacks

    These include former Conservative leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith, former minister Tim Loughton and the SNP's Stewart McDonald.

    They are all members of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China which scrutinises, and often criticises, the activities of Beijing.

    They are receiving a briefing from the head of parliamentary security about now and after that the trio are expected to give a press conference.

  8. China calls for clear evidence before ‘baseless’ claims made

    Laura Bicker
    China correspondent, reporting from Beijing

    The spokesperson for Beijing’s foreign ministry, Lin Jian, avoided mentioning the United Kingdom by name. But he said there should be sufficient, objective evidence of a cyber-attack before countries made what he described as baseless accusations.

    He said that investigating cyber incidents was highly complex and sensitive and it was crucial countries did not politicise these issues.

    He also claimed China was also one of the world’s main victims of cyber-attacks.

    His words echo previous responses from Beijing which all seem to be challenging the UK to show clear evidence that China was behind the hack.

  9. China represents an 'epoch-defining challenge' - Sunak

    A close up of Rishi Sunak speaking at an engineering firm in BarrowReuters

    UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak says the country is taking measures to protect itself against the "epoch-defining challenge" from a China that is "behaving in an increasingly assertive way abroad".

    Speaking at an engineering firm in Barrow, Cumbria, he says China is the "greatest state-based threat to our economic security".

    Sunak says that the UK has the "world leading" National Cyber Security Centre to protect it, adding that foreign leaders "want to learn and talk to us because they believe that our capabilities in this country are very strong".

  10. Analysis

    How the hack pointed to China

    Joe Tidy
    Cyber correspondent

    Since the bombshell Electoral Commission hack was announced everything pointed to it being carried out by a skilled and patient group not interested in financial gain.

    Normally when a big organisation is infiltrated, hackers will shout from the rooftops about what data they have stolen and how much money they demand to return it.

    But with this monster hack there was radio silence.

    No ransom demands and no cyber gangs bragging about it online.

    So from the get-go cyber experts felt this was an espionage attack – one designed to steal information for a rival government and carried out by cyber military.

    There are few countries with the skills and motivation to have done it – China, Russia and Iran spring to mind.

    So today’s announcement that it was likely China is not a surprise.

    It’s also worth noting that the other side of today’s allegations – that individual MPs were hacked too – is not uncommon in the tit for tat cyber espionage world. Only last week Germany accused Russia of the same. It’s likely that the UK and allies carry out similar operations too.

  11. China calls UK’s accusations ‘false information’

    A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson has described reports that the UK government believes it is behind the 2021 cyber-attack on voters records as “false information”.

    Lin Jian, who was speaking at a press conference, said that it was China, in fact, that was the “main victim” of cyber attacks. He added: “We advocate all countries to deal with this together through dialogue and cooperation”.

    Jian insisted that any accusations should be backed up with “objective evidence” and warned against politicising the issue.

    “We hope, rather that parties can stop spreading this false information and take a responsible attitude and jointly safeguard security and peace of cyberspace”, he added.

  12. What was the electoral commission hack?

    Last August, the UK’s elections watchdog revealed that an attack on voters' data had taken place in August 2021, which it had only discovered in October 2022.

    The Electoral Commission said at that time that unspecified "hostile actors" had managed to gain access to copies of the electoral registers and warned the public to watch out for unauthorised use of their data.

    They added that the hackers had managed to break into its emails and "control systems" but could not "conclusively" identify which files may have been accessed.

    The commission said last August that they weren’t able to predict exactly how many people could be affected, but that the register for each year contained the details of around 40 million people.

    Explaining why it had not made the attack public earlier, the commission said it first needed to stop the hackers' access, examine the extent of the incident and put additional security measures in place.

    Today, it’s expected that the UK government will link the cyber-attacks to China with Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden poised to address Parliament about the threat.

  13. UK to link cyber-attack on voter data to China

    Nadia Ragozhina
    Live reporter

    Oliver DowdenReuters

    Good morning and welcome to our live coverage. You join us as British MPs are about to be briefed on the cyber threat from China, ahead of the deputy PM's address to Parliament on the issue.

    Oliver Dowden will speak in the Commons this afternoon on cyber-attacks which accessed the personal details of millions of voters in August 2021.

    Dowden is expected to link the attacks on the Electoral Commission to China, which were only revealed last year.

    He’ll also lay out how the UK will respond to what it deems a wider threat.

    Three MPs who are thought to have also been targeted in cyber-attacks will shortly receive a briefing from the head of parliamentary security.

    China, without naming the UK, has hit back at "smears" and says countries should not make baseless accusations over cyber-security issues or spread "false information".

    It's going to be a busy day in Westminster, so stay with us as we bring you the latest lines and analysis on this story.