China Rejects UK Cyber Agency Warning That It Will Use AI Against Critical Infrastructure

Asked about the warning at the ministry's regular briefing, spokeswoman Mao Ning said China had "serious concern over the UK's use of speculative language to smear China in the absence of evidence," according to AFP. Xinhua quoted her as saying Britain had "long politicized the cybersecurity issue" and was using hacking allegations as a pretext to hold back China's AI development, an approach she said "is not helpful for increasing mutual trust between China and the UK."

The dispute matters because the NCSC, which is part of GCHQ, is now treating AI as the factor that will multiply the scale of state-backed hacking within two years, and it names China as the main threat. That assessment shapes how British regulators, critical infrastructure operators and their suppliers decide where to spend on security.

In its annual report on Tuesday, the agency said it is "highly likely" that Britain will face a ransomware attack using AI-powered malware against its critical national infrastructure by 2028, and that China, Russia and other nation states will by then be using AI-enabled cyber tools routinely. "China highly likely has the intent and is best positioned to use AI for operations against critical national infrastructure and other strategic targets," the report said. It also said Russia is making sustained attempts to break into UK military networks, and that Iran is carrying out malicious cyber operations worldwide, including against Britain and individuals it regards as threats.

Richard Horne, the NCSC's chief executive, said: "In the coming months, we face a real prospect of an unprecedented rise in the number of cyber incidents." He said this was because "vulnerabilities that have been tolerated for far too long can now be discovered and exploited". Horne argued that AI has not created new methods of attack but lets existing weaknesses be found and exploited at far greater scale. He said decades of underinvestment in technology have left many organisations and supply chains exposed, and that companies will have to explain why they ignored known risks. He described China's activity as the most sophisticated and sustained cyber challenge Britain faces.

The warning followed hacking attacks on connected equipment at European supermarkets, which exposed weaknesses in retailers' IT systems. The agency said disrupted food supplies, power cuts and business failures are among the possible consequences of attacks on infrastructure.

In her response, Mao said AI-related cybersecurity risks are a global problem that should be handled through new rules set at the United Nations. She said China wants AI development that is open, benefits everyone, and is safe, reliable and controllable. Britain, the United States and New Zealand have publicly accused China of cyber intrusions over the past decade, and Beijing has denied all of the accusations.