British spies strengthen cybersecurity of Ukraine against Russian attacks

British cyber spies have been playing a key role in defending Ukraine from widespread Russian cyberattacks since the start of the invasion, it has been confirmed.

The damage caused by Russian hackers would have been "very significant" without the British assistance, Leo Docherty, a junior foreign office minister, said.

He told Sky News the UK has also bolstered its own cyber defences because of "a very significant cyber threat from Russia".

"We're already on the frontline… We are aware of the threat. We have raised our own preparations and our own defences," Mr Docherty said.

"That's why we've got some deep expertise when it comes to cyber defence and that's why we've been very pleased to share it with our Ukrainian allies."

Britain has made its cyber support public because keeping it secret was no longer deemed necessary, officials said - an indication that the Kremlin was already aware.

Worth some £6.35m ($7.3 billion), the so-called Ukraine Cyber Programme was activated after President Vladimir Putin launched his full-scale war on February 24.

Physical strikes by Russian troops and tanks against Ukrainian targets were coupled with a significant rise in cyber attacks, officials said.

A failure to deliver any major blow in cyberspace was not because Russian hackers did not try but instead is believed to be thanks to Ukraine's cyber defenders, backed by experts from the cyber industry and foreign governments, including from the UK, defeating or limiting the impact of their efforts.

The UK said it was playing a leading role, helping the Ukrainian government respond to cyber attacks and protect its networks and classified information.

The British support drew on the expertise of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), which is part of GCHQ.

Lindy Cameron, chief executive of the NCSC, said in a statement her centre "is proud to have played a part in supporting Ukraine's cyber defenders.