A cyber attack forced a small UK power facility to shut down last month, underscoring fresh warnings from security officials about an escalating pattern of disruptive activity targeting British organisations.
Hackers linked to the Iranian regime carried out the operation, which lasted four days, The Telegraph reported.
The newspaper said the incident came as the United States faced a cluster of attacks on water infrastructure in July.
The UK government confirmed that a “small-scale energy generator” was hit, while stressing the broader energy network was never in danger. Officials did not identify the site involved.
In the wake of the breach, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero briefed senior figures across the energy sector and wrote to companies with guidance, according to the report.
A government spokesperson said: “The UK has a highly resilient energy system. We work closely with the energy sector to protect infrastructure and ensure the highest security standards.
“This story refers to an incident impacting a small-scale energy generator, and at no point was there a risk to the wider energy system.”
The incident was reported to the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), part of GCHQ, The Telegraph reported.
It is understood the NCSC received no reports of outages connected to the cyberattack.
The agency has repeatedly cautioned that UK organisations are facing a sustained pattern of disruptive cyber activity from both state and non-state actors.
NCSC chief Richard Horne said earlier this year that hostile states, including Iran, are increasingly directing online attacks at the UK’s infrastructure.
Liberal Democrats foreign affairs spokesperson Calum Miller said: “Reports that Iran-linked hackers shut down a UK power plant show the threat posed by hostile foreign powers to our national security.
“The Government must urgently strengthen plans to secure our energy infrastructure and protect us from attack.”
