§ Mr. Ian TaylorTo ask the President of the Council what actions she is taking to deal with the possibility of attacks of(a) viruses, (b) trojans and (c) worms on networked computer systems over the new year 2000 period. [100405]
§ Mrs. BeckettGovernment Departments and private sector organisations owning computer systems of critical importance to the national infrastructure receive, as a matter of course, advice and guidance on preventing and handling computer security incidents, including virus attacks. To guard against any extra risk that might arise over the Millennium period, they have also been issued with specific guidance on precautionary measures and how to deal with a suspected attack during this time. The Government's Unified Incident Reporting and Alert Scheme, UNIRAS, will be on call throughout the Millennium period to give owners of critical systems emergency advice.
For other organisations and the general public, advice on computer security and viruses is available from various sources including recognised computer security organisations, computer hardware and software manufacturers and, in particular, anti-virus software vendors.