Britain's spies 'step up efforts to tackle cyber threats from abroad' amid fears hostile foreign states helped whip up far-right riots

By GREG HEFFER, POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT

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Britain's spies are stepping up efforts to tackle cyber threats from abroad amid fears hostile states helped whip up far-right riots, it has emerged.

Downing Street has admitted online misinformation over the Southport stabbing attack might have been amplified by foreign state actors.

The National Crime Agency, the UK's equivalent of the FBI, has been probing bot activity in relation to the widespread disorder over the past two weeks.

And, according to Bloomberg, the Government is working with GCHQ to set up a new body to increase intelligence cooperation.

A 'Laboratory for AI Security Research' will unify work by Whitehall departments and intelligence officials to look at how Britain's enemies use AI offensively, it reported.

Sources told the outlet this would range from looking at the spread of online misinformation to AI-made bio weapons.

Riot police officers are pictured pushing back masked men outside the Holiday Inn Express Hotel, which is housing asylum seekers, in Rotherham last Sunday

Riot police officers are pictured pushing back masked men outside the Holiday Inn Express Hotel, which is housing asylum seekers, in Rotherham last Sunday

The Government is reportedly working with GCHQ to set up a new body to increase intelligence cooperation

The Government is reportedly working with GCHQ to set up a new body to increase intelligence cooperation

A YouGov poll found a large majority of Britons (71 per cent) said tech companies did a bad job at tackling misinformation during riots

A YouGov poll found a large majority of Britons (71 per cent) said tech companies did a bad job at tackling misinformation during riots

Sadiq Khan has been among a number of top politicians to call for tougher rules for social media firms, with the London mayor branding current regulations 'not fit for purpose'.

He said the recent riots were the 'direct consequence' of misinformation being spread 'very quickly' online following the Southport killings.

After the stabbings on July 29, an incorrect name and a false story around the background of the suspected perpetrator spread online.

In recent days Elon Musk - the owner of X, formerly known as Twitter - has been heavily criticised for posts about the disorder in the wake of the stabbings.

The controversial billionaire was called 'deeply irresponsible' by Justice Secretary Heidi Alexander for posting that 'civil war is inevitable' in the UK.

He also reposted an image of a fake news headline about the UK's response to riots.

A new YouGov poll found two-thirds of Britons (66 per cent) think social media companies should be held responsible for posts inciting criminal behaviour during the recent unrest.

A large majority of respondents (71 per cent) said tech companies did a bad job at tackling misinformation during riots, including 46 per cent who think they did a 'very bad' job. Just 9 per cent think they did a good job.

Seven in ten people (70 per cent) also believe that social media firms are not regulated strongly enough, including 39 per cent who think there is 'much too little' regulation.

Only 14 per cent of Britons think social media firms are regulated to the right degree, while a further 7 per cent think that companies are regulated too much, the poll revealed.

Messages from what appeared to be far-right channels on the fringe social network Telegram sparked fears of further unrest on Wednesday night, although much of it failed to materialise.

An estimated 25,000 anti-racism protesters instead turned out in force in cities across the UK.

Experts warned about Telegram's lax controls compared to other social media sites.

Matthew Feldman, a specialist on right-wing extremism who teaches at the University of York, told Politico: 'The far right, fascists and neo-nazis have long regarded Telegram as a safe space for the exchange of their views.'

A unnamed Government official also noted how Telegram was much harder to reach given it has little to no presence in the UK.

'What are we meant to do about an app headquartered in Dubai and used by the Russians for disinformation?,' they told the website.

'Better to target the people using these apps to organize violence than the platforms themselves.' 

The company said in a statement: 'Telegram allows peaceful expression regardless of political affiliation, but calls to violence are explicitly forbidden by Telegram's terms of service.'

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