Today’s data centers are the critical computing infrastructure that powers the modern Internet.
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LONDON — Britain said Thursday it will now classify data centers as critical infrastructure, a move expected to improve the country’s cybersecurity and help operators of critical computing facilities work with the government to protect data from malicious attacks and disruptions. .
UK technology minister Peter Kyle said UK data centers would be awarded a “critical national infrastructure” (CNI) designation, a label usually only applied to critical sectors such as energy, nuclear power, defence, space and emergency services.
“Data centers are the engines of modern life, they power the digital economy and keep our most personal information secure,” Kyle said in a statement Thursday.
Kyle said granting critical infrastructure status to data centers would allow the government to better coordinate its response to hackers and unexpected cyber incidents.
The government said data center operators would effectively be given direct contact with the government to prepare for and respond to data threats.
This is the first time in nearly ten years that a new industry has been awarded the CNI designation. In 2015, both the space and defense sectors were granted CNI status.
£4 billion data center investment
At the same time, the UK also announced on Thursday its support for a plan submitted by DC01UK, which will develop a large-scale data center covering an area of 85 acres in Hertfordshire, UK. It is said that the data center will become the largest data center in Europe when completed. center.
According to the government, DC01UK plans to invest £3.75 billion ($4.9 billion) in new data center projects and is expected to directly create more than 700 local jobs and support 13,740 data and technology jobs in the UK.
Hot on the heels of U.S. tech giants Amazon announced on Wednesday that it will invest 8 billion pounds ($10.45 billion) in the UK through its AWS cloud computing unit over the next five years to build and operate data centers in the country.
Data centers are a critical part of today’s modern Internet. They support cloud computing or provide large-scale network services to end consumers through remote servers.
When they go offline, they can cause massive outages for network users and sometimes even disrupt critical services.
The government says it needs to focus on critical data infrastructure after a massive global IT outage earlier this year disrupted most doctors’ practices in the UK. mass strike.
The UK has bigger plans to strengthen the country’s cyber security. Earlier this summer, the King’s Speech announced the introduction of a new Cybersecurity and Resilience Bill that would require critical IT infrastructure suppliers to protect their supply chains from attacks.
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