Britain's smart cities face 'Italian Job' cyber attacks on digital networks
08 May, 2021
Smart cities are susceptible to cyber attacks targeted at weaknesses in their connected digital infrastructure, the UK's National Cyber Security Centre said.
Global metropolises use a variety of connected devices and sensors that manage integrated systems, such as for example traffic light and CCTV networks.
Councils should be better ready to protect these systems from hackers who've the potential to disrupt critical networks, the NCSC said.
Such a scenario is similar to a scene in the classic British film The Italian Job, said NCSC technical director Dr Ian Levy, and would be catastrophic for individuals who live and work in afflicted cities.
“One of the first Hollywood depictions of a cyber attack was against critical infrastructure,” he wrote in a blog.
“It had been an attack against a city’s centralised traffic management system in the 1969 film The Italian Job.
“As part of an elaborate heist, a dodgy computer professor [played by Benny Hill] switches magnetic storage tapes for the Turin traffic control to produce a gridlock. Chaos ensues and the thieves escape with the gold.
“An identical ‘gridlock’ attack on a 21st-century city could have catastrophic impacts on the persons who live and work there, and criminals wouldn’t need physical usage of the traffic control system to accomplish it.”
An identical ‘gridlock’ attack on a 21st-century city could have catastrophic impacts
In response to the threat, the NCSC issued new guidance for councils and local authorities to greatly help secure linked places and their underlying infrastructure.
The principles offer advice on designing and managing smart city networks to avoid mass data loss or rogue actors gaining access for spying or other purposes.
“Local authorities are employing sensors and intelligent systems to improve our lives and make our cities better and environmentally friendly,” Dr Levy said.
"These connected physical environments are just emerging in the UK, so this is the time to make certain we’re designing and building them properly."
Source: www.thenationalnews.com
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