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Government relies on information systems to supply services to, and on behalf of, citizens. The NHS, emergency services, police, the military, places of education - all rely on IT and telecommunications. We must take steps to ensure that the systems behind these services are as secure and reliable as possible.
Moreover, we live in an interconnected and interdependent society. The stability of the economy and well-being of the nation depend on more than just the continuity of public services. For example, an electronic attack on the financial sector could have knock-on effects on the overall state of the economy.
One system is dependent, to a greater or lesser extent, on other systems functioning reliably and properly. If you run a small business, you may rely on many different services to ensure that you are able to run your business as best you can. You may have made your systems as safe and secure as possible. But if a key supplier or contractor of yours has not and suffers a systems failure then you - and many other businesses besides - may not be able to meet your customers' demands. Likewise, other suppliers are dependent on the safety of your systems.
Home users are increasingly becoming a focus for hackers since they are seen as a soft target. Criminals are exploiting the Internet as a means of obtaining personal information such as credit card or bank account details. They can even go to such lengths as downloading illegal files (e.g. pornography) onto personal computers without the owner's knowledge. PCs can also be used as 'zombies' for launching attacks on other computer networks.
Government must concern itself with the availability and reliability of all information systems to protect the interests of the people it serves. Since information systems are used in just about every facet of modern life, the protection of information systems must reach across the whole range of government responsibilities. Each government department should also promote information security awareness amongst their sectors regarding the risks of leaving information systems unprotected.
Government has been concerned with the protection of the systems underpinning key public services for some time. In an increasingly interconnected and interdependent world we must encourage all sectors of society to take responsibility for the security of their own information systems. The nature of the work we are undertaking reflects the need to involve the public and private sectors as well as the community.
There are five key areas that our work covers: