The UK is introducing a new cyber security and resilience bill
Cybersecurity threats are getting bolder, faster, and, frankly, smarter. The UK government has decided to stop reacting late and instead take a proactive position. With the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill set to hit Parliament, they’re moving to future-proof national infrastructure against escalating digital risks, especially ransomware, which continues to target essential systems like healthcare, logistics, and data services.
This bill is about creating a structural shift in how digital infrastructure is safeguarded, something long overdue, given the outdated 2018 regulations still in force. The UK wants to shield government agencies and private companies that operate vital infrastructure. Leadership across industries will need to get serious about building sustained cyber resilience, no optional upgrades, no near-miss margins.
For executives running critical services, this bill forces a timely question: “Are our systems resilient enough for today’s threats?” And if they’re not, the expectation will be that you make room on your roadmap and in your budget to make them so. Investment in foundational security can’t be delayed until post-incident evaluations anymore, it has to live in your first-tier strategy.
Let’s look at the numbers. The UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) reported 430 cyber incidents in 2024, up from 371 the previous year. Out of these, 89 attacks were considered “nationally significant,” meaning they disrupted essential services or struck the broader economy. This should remove any illusion that these threats are isolated. They’re targeted, coordinated, and disruptive.
Peter Kyle, the UK’s Technology Secretary, says this legislation is key to positioning the UK as a global leader in digital security. He’s framing it as a matter of national safety and market integrity. He’s right. National competitiveness in the digital economy depends on trust, and that trust depends on resilience. If you’re a CEO, CFO, or CIO anywhere near critical services, this is a signal: toughen your infrastructure, harden your systems, and get ahead of government compliance timelines before your hand is forced.
Expanding the regulatory scope with 1,000 additional service providers
The UK’s cyber defense approach is about to scale, fast. Current cybersecurity laws are still pinned to the 2018 Network and Information Systems (NIS) Regulations, which only cover a limited set of sectors like transport, energy, and healthcare. They leave serious gaps, especially in areas like data infrastructure, which today powers everything from government services to AI pipelines. That’s changing.
The new Cyber Security and Resilience Bill will expand regulatory coverage to roughly 1,000 new service providers. This includes sectors never formally covered before, most notably, data centers. As of September, data centers are officially recognized as Critical National Infrastructure. This shift directly reflects how central these facilities have become to national operations and economic stability.
For executive leadership, this expansion means new obligations, likely involving compliance audits, incident reporting timelines, and budget planning for updated security capability. If you’re operating in a sector that previously wasn’t under this regulatory spotlight, now is the time to prepare. Companies will face mandatory timelines, increasing demands from regulators, and potential legal risk for noncompliance.
There’s a cost to this, and government officials know it. William Richmond-Coggan, a dispute management partner at law firm Freeths, flagged this reality. He’s noted that even if a company has the budget and leadership commitment, aligning legacy systems with modern cybersecurity standards is a long-term lift. There’s also a broader human element, actual security depends on behavior, not just protocols and software. His warning is clear: over-relying on regulation from the top risks overlooking what’s needed at the operational level, ongoing training, consistent reinforcement of best practices, and organizational alertness.
C-suite executives should treat this as a signal. The scope is widening because the surface area for attack is wider than ever. And that only happens when leadership puts cyber readiness on the same level as financial risk or operational uptime.
Regulatory powers will be granted to oversight bodies to ensure robust implementation of cybersecurity measures
The UK’s Cyber Security and Resilience Bill is changing how regulation works. Regulators will be equipped with new authority to enforce cybersecurity standards decisively, close monitoring gaps, and make sure companies are actively mitigating risk on an ongoing basis.
Key oversight bodies like the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) will now have greater discretion. These powers include issuing information notices, mandating responses to potential vulnerabilities, and recovering operational costs through regulatory fees. Codes of practice and sector-specific guidelines will be issued to create more clarity across industries. Compliance won’t be optional or loosely defined, it will be spelled out and enforced.
For C-level executives, this means regulatory pressure will become more structured and less reactive. The cost of doing business will include consistent cybersecurity auditing, upfront and continuous investments in breach prevention, and real accountability. If you are operating in transport, utilities, healthcare, cloud infrastructure, or other critical sectors, enforcement will likely intensify through sector-focused directives.
The scale of enforcement will also shift. According to statements tied to the bill, the government plans to draw from the Telecommunications (Security) Act 2021 in designing its approach. That law authorizes penalties up to £100,000 per day or 10% of annual turnover for companies that fail to comply. These numbers are significant enough to force a board-level response.
Regulators will no longer have to wait for infractions to cause damage before acting. They’ll have the tools to preemptively intervene. For executives, this changes the dynamic. Cybersecurity will no longer be just a compliance function, it becomes a standing operational expectation, enforceable by law at any moment. The practical takeaway: transform cyber defense from a back-office function to a core strategic priority, or risk falling behind both the threat landscape and regulatory environment.
The bill mandates expanded incident reporting requirements for a wider range of cyber events
The Cyber Security and Resilience Bill is raising the bar on what must be reported. The days of limiting disclosure to events that cause full-service outages are over. Under the new framework, any cyber incident that affects the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of systems will be subject to mandatory reporting.
What does that look like in practice? If a company’s internal tools are compromised by spyware, even if there’s no visible disruption to service, regulators expect to be informed. If attackers breach a system and access sensitive data, that event must be reported. Even incidents that affect clients, rather than hitting your systems directly, fall under this scope. This is about early detection, transparency, and building a shared understanding of threat activity across industries.
Executives need to take this seriously. The bill sets a strict reporting timeline: companies will have 24 hours to notify their regulator and the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) after identifying a significant incident. A full incident report is due within 72 hours after confirmation. And if you provide digital services or run a data center, you also need to alert affected customers within that timeframe.
The aim here is clear: centralized, real-time threat intelligence. By making sure regulators get early warnings, government response plans can activate before issues escalate further. This also supports cross-sector learning, if attackers use a new vulnerability on one company, others can prepare quickly.
Operationally, this new standard will require stronger detection capabilities and better internal protocols. Many organizations still don’t have cohesive incident response systems that can identify, assess, and escalate threats within hours. That will no longer be acceptable. Executives should be investing now in real-time monitoring, forensic readiness, and internal training on how to meet notification requirements without delay.
This shift in reporting marks a transition to full-spectrum accountability. It’s recognizing weakness when it shows up early and being transparent about it. Boards should make this part of their governance model because regulators now expect that level of maturity systemwide.
The government can now implement ad hoc changes in response to threats
The Cyber Security and Resilience Bill gives the UK government something it hasn’t had in the cybersecurity space until now, authority to act in real time. Specifically, the Technology Secretary will be granted the ability to update the regulatory framework on demand. That means if a new threat emerges, or if a new sector becomes vulnerable, the government won’t need to wait for a lengthy legislative process to respond.
This flexibility is focused on speed. It allows the UK to quickly expand regulatory coverage to new types of organizations or technologies as national security needs evolve. Regulations will no longer be static, they can adapt to platform shifts, emerging tactics from threat actors, and changes in how critical services operate.
During an active cyber threat, whether it’s ransomware, targeted system disruption, or something more advanced, the government will be able to issue security directions directly to any in-scope organization or regulator. These can include mandatory actions, such as system patching within a fixed timeframe or protective lockdown procedures.
This type of authority is designed to cut response time and improve coordination. But it also introduces a new layer of operational uncertainty for companies. You might receive directives to act within hours, not weeks, and you’ll be expected to comply immediately. That means if your systems aren’t patch-ready, if your recovery protocols are fragile, or if your internal decision-making is slow, your response won’t meet the government’s expectations.
For C-suite leaders, the implication is clear: build for flexibility. Make sure both your tech stack and your team can respond to rapid regulatory updates. Cybersecurity strategies now require executive involvement, not just sign-off, but continuous ownership. You need a system in place that can digest new government directives quickly and move.
This is about making national security measures actionable at scale, inside companies that control key infrastructure. The bill also signals that enforcement will draw on the model used in the Telecommunications (Security) Act 2021, which allows for severe penalties, up to £100,000 per day or 10% of global revenue, for failures to comply.
The message from the government is clear: they’re not waiting. And if your business supports critical functions, directly or indirectly, you won’t be allowed to wait either. Be ready to evolve as fast as the threats do.
Banning ransom payments from public sector bodies and key industries
The UK government is actively weighing a controversial but strategic move, banning ransom payments from public sector organizations and critical industries. The objective is clear: reduce the financial incentives driving the surge in ransomware attacks. If threat actors know there’s no payout, they’re less likely to invest resources into targeting the UK’s essential services.
The proposal, revealed earlier this year, is under serious review. It aligns with broader government strategy to disrupt the attack-reward cycle many cybercriminals depend on. Making critical infrastructure harder, and less lucrative, to exploit is part of a long-term deterrence play.
This move, however, comes with operational trade-offs, particularly for high-stakes sectors like healthcare. Experts have voiced concern that a blanket ban could create dangerous situations where system downtime becomes a matter of life or death. In such environments, withholding ransom payments could result in prolonged outages, delayed treatments, or even fatalities. That nuance has not been ignored. Some within government circles have acknowledged that exemptions may be necessary for essential services dealing with safety-of-life operations.
For C-suite executives, especially those in regulated industries, this evolving policy direction should trigger immediate internal review. If a no-payment policy is enforced, your current incident response strategy may become obsolete. You’ll need far better resilience planning, stronger backups, faster data restoration processes, and airtight coordination with regulators and the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC). You’ll also need alignment across your legal, operational, and governance teams on how to engage with law enforcement under the new conditions.
What’s important to understand is that this potential ban is not meant to function in isolation. It’s part of a wider strategy the Bill is driving, one that emphasizes prevention, early enforcement, and sector-wide visibility. And while the discussion is still ongoing, forward-looking leaders will treat this as an early cue to upgrade their resilience posture. Because once implemented, the rules will apply with the full weight of national security intent. No exceptions by ignorance. Only response through preparation.
Key takeaways for leaders
- UK reforms target rising ransomware threats: The Cyber Security and Resilience Bill signals a national shift from reactive to proactive cyber defense. Leaders in critical sectors should align cyber investment with resilience as a core operational priority.
- Regulatory scope widens significantly: Around 1,000 new service providers, including data centers, will fall under updated cybersecurity rules. Executives should assess current exposure and prepare infrastructure and teams for full regulatory integration.
- Regulators gain sharper enforcement tools: Agencies like the ICO will be empowered to issue directives, recover costs, and impose major penalties. Decision-makers should develop governance systems capable of meeting more aggressive oversight and pre-emptive audits.
- Incident reporting requirements expand: Cyber events affecting data integrity, confidentiality, or availability must be reported within 24–72 hours. Organizations should evolve detection and response systems to meet these timelines without regulatory missteps.
- Government can act in real time during threats: The Technology Secretary will be able to issue mandatory cybersecurity actions and expand sector coverage instantly. Business leaders should ensure systems and teams can respond rapidly to shifting directives without operational delay.
- Ransom payment bans under review: The UK may prohibit ransom payments in public and critical sectors to reduce criminal incentives. Executives, especially in healthcare and infrastructure, should update response protocols to account for legal constraints on payment under attack.
