A/76/187 The United Kingdom is committed to using its cybercapabilities in a responsible way, in line with the law of the United Kingdom and international law. Pa st and future cyberoperations have operated and will continue to operate under existing laws, including the Intelligence Services Act of 1994 and the Investigatory Powers Act of 2016. This ensures that cyberoperations of the United Kingdom are responsible, targeted and proportionate. All Member States have agreed that it is in the interest of all States to promote the use of information and communications technologies (ICTs) for peaceful purposes. The United Kingdom reconfirms that ICTs are not in and of t hemselves a “threat”. Rather, it is when States (or other actors) choose or are perceived to use them “for purposes inconsistent with international peace and security ” that the threat or risk arises. In this context, furthering the conversation about how S tates understand international law applies when acting in cyberspace is a practical step to increasing transparency, predictability and stability. The latest information about approaches of the United Kingdom to cybersecurity, including with regard to international cooperation, can be found online at www.gov.uk/government/cyber-security and www.ncsc.gov.uk. The content of the concepts mentioned in the reports of the Group of Governmental Experts The United Kingdom welcomes that both processes saw Member States reaffirm the previous three Group of Governmental Expert consensus reports of 2010, 2013 and 2015, which confirmed that international law applies to cyberspace and established a framework of responsible State behaviour consisting of a set of voluntary and non-binding norms and confidence-building measures, underpinned by capacity-building. The new reports in 2021 will be an important contribution to the acquis. The United Kingdom considers that the proper implementation of the framework outlined in the existing reports, in its entirety by all States, provides a practical starting point for our efforts to increase stability in cyberspace. Universalization and operationalization of the cumulative assessments and recommendations would be a practical step forward. Practical, action -oriented approaches are therefore required. Existing and emerging threats With regard to developing trends, during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, attackers took advantage of the crisis in their selection of targets, which included hospitals and other health-related critical infrastructure. Malicious actors actively targeted organizations involved in both national and international COVID-19 responses. These organizations include health-care bodies, pharmaceutical companies, academic institutions, medical research organizations and local government. Such actors frequently target organizations in order to collect bulk personal information, intellectual property and intelligence that aligns with national priorities. Ransomware has become one of the most frequent and disruptive types of incident dealt with by the United Kingdom’s National Cyber Security Centre. In the 2020 annual review, 10 we noted that the Centre handled more than three times as many incidents as the previous year. The United Kingdom also saw a spike in ransomware attacks affecting the education sector at a time when institutions were w orking hard to manage online learning, admissions and testing procedures. Attackers are increasingly raising the stakes by threatening to leak stolen data publicly where __________________ 10 38/46 www.ncsc.gov.uk/news/annual-review-2020. 21-10045