Amazon signs deal with British spy agencies to boost use of AI for espionage

Spy agency GCHQ has been using basic forms of AI such as translation technology for years but is now stepping up its use.

October 26, 2021 11:12 am | Updated 11:50 am IST

GCHQ Director Jeremy Fleming said at a conference the number of ransomware attacks has doubled across the U.K. in 2021 compared with last year.

GCHQ Director Jeremy Fleming said at a conference the number of ransomware attacks has doubled across the U.K. in 2021 compared with last year.

Britain's spy agencies have given a contract to Amazon Web Services (AWS) to host classified material in a deal aimed at boosting the use of data analytics and artificial intelligence (AI) for espionage, the Financial Times reported on Monday.

(Sign up to our Technology newsletter, Today's Cache, for insights on emerging themes at the intersection of technology, business and policy. Click here to subscribe for free.)

Britain's GCHQ spy agency championed the procurement of a high-security cloud system and it will be used by sister services MI5 and MI6, as well as other government departments such as the Ministry of Defence during joint operations, the report added.

The agreement was signed this year with AWS, Amazon.com Inc's cloud service unit, and the data of all the agencies will be held in Britain, the newspaper reported, citing people familiar with the discussions.

GCHQ said it would not comment on claims about its relationships with tech suppliers. AWS was not immediately available for comment.

Also Read | Amazon event | From Astro robot to Alexa upgrades: here are the highlights

In February, Britain's cyber spies at the GCHQ eavesdropping agency said they have fully embraced artificial intelligence to uncover patterns in vast amounts of global data to counter hostile disinformation and snare child abusers.

GCHQ has been using basic forms of AI such as translation technology for years but is now stepping up its use, partly in response to the use of AI by hostile states and partly due to the data explosion which makes it effective.

Earlier on Monday, GCHQ Director Jeremy Fleming said at a conference the number of ransomware attacks has doubled across the U.K. in 2021 compared with last year, according to the FT.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.