Ben Farmer, defence correspondent
29 MARCH 2016
The Tactical Trigger that would be used in the final stage of a nuclear missile launch
Britain’s Trident nuclear deterrent is to be updated to protect it from cyber attack.
Software in the nuclear missile system will be upgraded as defence officials admitted there was “legitimate concern” about threats from cyber hackers.
The Trident missiles, which are shared with America, will be updated amid growing worries defence computers and systems could be vulnerable to cyber attacks from Russia, China, groups such as Islamic State or organised crime gangs.
A former Defence Secretary last year warned that the deterrent was unreliable unless the Government could ensure it was free of cyber weak spots that might be targeted.
Lord Browne of Ladyton warned: "If they are unable to do that then there is no guarantee that we will have a reliable deterrent or the Prime Minister will be able to use this system when he needs to reach for it.”
The US Navy has now announced American and British Trident missiles will be upgraded as both nations pour billions into cyber security.
'It's information security that could be more important in the cyber realm'
Nuclear strategy expert Andrew Futter
John Daniels, a spokesman for the US Navy’s nuclear deterrent programme, told Bloomberg: “Now that cyber has become even more important in our national security, there will be even more requirements. In our modern era, cybersecurity threats are a legitimate concern.”
The software security work will be carried out by BAE Systems, which carries out maintenance of the missiles. The company declined to comment on the work.
Britain and America use the same pool of submarine-launched Trident II D5 missiles, but design and build their payloads of nuclear warheads separately.
Britain’s 58 missiles, which are carried by the Royal Navy’s four Vanguard class nuclear submarines, are sent back to America for upgrades and maintenance. Each boat carries eight missiles, and each one can be fitted with up to 12 warheads that can strike different targets with a range of 7,500 miles.
Andrew Futter, a nuclear strategy expert at Leicester University, said until recently commanders had been "fairly complacent" about the cyber threat to the nuclear deterrent.
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He said defence officials had stressed that because the UK's nuclear submarines were not connected to the Internet on secret deterrent missions they were largely protected from hackers by an "air gap" between the deterrent and the rest of the online world.
But he said there were still potential weak spots and there was a greater risk when the boats came in to port to receive upgrades and maintenance. Malicious programs to sabotage or damage the deterrent could also be secretly hidden in nuclear systems when new parts are being designed and made.
Dr Futter said a scenario where someone hacks into the deterrent to try to fire a missile or hold a country to ransom was "very, very slim".
A more likely risk would be hackers stealing design or operational secrets from the deterrent that would make it vulnerable.
He said: "It's information security that could be more important in the cyber realm."
A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: "The deterrent remains safe and secure. We take our responsibility to maintain a credible nuclear deterrent extremely seriously and continually assess the security of the whole deterrent programme and its operational effectiveness, including against threats from cyber.”
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