CYBER WARFARE

MICROSOFT boss, Brad Smith, has warned that cyberspace has become the new battlefield.

He has said that terrorists and rogue states are using it to mount devastating attacks on civilians.

He admitted tools created by technology firms were being turned into weapons – and called for a “digital Geneva Convention” to prevent a global arms race.

Mr Smith, president of the US tech giant, said cyber attacks had already caused real “human suffering” around the world, pointing to a virus which last year crippled NHS hospitals in Britain and caused thousands of appointments – including operations – to be cancelled.

Days before a peace conference in Paris timed to coincide with the 100th anniversary commemorations of the First World War armistice, Mr Smith, 59, also drew comparisons with the build-up of arms in the early 20th century and said history was at risk of repeating itself.

Tech firms need to do more to prevent the use of their services in hacking attacks and governments must come to a global agreement to halt the escalation of cyber attacks, he told Web Summit in Lisbon.

“We cannot remain silent in this century,” he said. “Like it or not – and I don’t think we should like it – the reality is we have become the battlefield. We will do the future an injustice if we don’t also recognise this new generation of technology has also created a new generation of challenges and threats.

“Tools we have created have been turned by others into weapons. If a hospital loses access to its computers and electricity, people’s lives are put at risk.

“We need a moral revolution with this technological revolution. There are lessons from a century ago.”

Mr Smith said almost one billion people were estimated to have been victims of cyber attacks in 2017 alone. Power stations, hospitals and other vital infrastructure will be at even greater risk as more objects are connected to the internet, he warned. He said last year had been “a wake-up call” for technology companies, following the devastating Wannacry and Notpetya viruses that swept through computer systems across the world.

More than one third of NHS trusts were affected by Wannacry, with almost 7,000 appointments cancelled.

The virus, known as ransomware, locked staff out of computer systems and demanded payments to allow them access. The UK and US governments blamed North Korea for the attack.