Politicians set to have seminars on Russia hacking threat

UK politicians are set to attend seminars on hacking threats from Russia which are believed to pose a threat to democracy.

Intelligence organisation GCHQ is warning political parties across Britain that operations by Russian hackers could cause disruption to political activity.

It comes after the Kremlin was accused of carrying out cyber-attacks in order to interfere in US and German elections.

Politicians in Britain are now set to attend seminars in order to learn about the danger.

Ciaran Martin, chief executive of GCHQ's National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), has sent letters to the leaders of all main political parties to offer advice on how to withstand attacks, according to The Sunday Times.

Politicians will have seminars on the hacking threat from Russia Credit: PA

In the letter, he said: "You will be aware of the coverage of events in the United States, Germany and elsewhere reminding us of the potential for hostile action against the UK political system.

"This is not just about the network security of political parties' own systems.

"Attacks against our democratic processes go beyond this and can include attacks on parliament, constituency offices, think tanks and pressure groups and individuals' email accounts."

In February, Mr Martin said that 188 high-level cyber-attacks, "many of which threatened national security", had hit Britain in the prior three months.

Chancellor Philip Hammond, former defence secretary, also said the NCSC had been blocking "potential attacks" on government departments and the public at a rate of around 200 attempts a day.