Recommendation 17

The Home Office claims the lead on ransomware as a national security risk and policy issue, but the then Home Secretary, Suella Braverman MP, showed no interest in it. According to some observers, clear political priority is given instead to other issues, such as illegal migration and small boats. We recognise the significance of illegal migration as a policy challenge, but there is a risk that ransomware is relentlessly deprioritised. The Department’s ransomware ‘sprint’ in 2022 resulted in no discernible policy outcomes. The Minister for Security’s acknowledgement of how out of date the Computer Misuse Act is does not excuse the lack of progress which has been made to legislate in this space. It has been two-and-a-half years after its main consultation and 33 years since that dated legislation received Royal Assent. It is hard to see how the Criminal Justice Bill brought forward by the King’s Speech 2023 will sufficiently cover the gap left by the outdated CMA.