NCSC Annual Review 2022

The combined effect of changes in standards and the split into multiple ecosystems has led commentators to talk of the acceleration of harmful forms of fragmentation of the internet. While the internet, due to the nature of its decentralised evolution, has always been fragmented to a certain extent, what linked it together were fundamental levels of interoperability.

Although the overall impact of this more harmful fragmentation is still unclear it is likely it will have far-reaching consequences. By way of example, in the past, European travellers could not use their mobile phones in the United States. Society could be heading back to that sort of divide where users on each side would not be able to communicate with the other. And if they did, they might need to do so at the cost of their privacy, security or functionality.

The NCSC believes this has significant implications for the nation’s cyber security. As seen in the National Cyber Strategy there is an emphasis on projecting UK leadership in the technologies that will help the country cement its position as a leading, democratic cyber power. This includes leadership in shaping the UK’s future telecoms systems and limiting reliance on suppliers or technologies that are developed under regimes that do not share the values of free, open and democratic societies.