The independent reviewer of the UK’s terrorism laws has criticized the government’s latest national security strategy for failing to take online threats more seriously, although Keir Starmer claimed it would result in “hardening and sharpening our approach” in the face of the Russian threat.
Jonathan Hall Casey said it was “a very surprising omission” that the National Security Strategy to 2025 did not focus more on online risks, including from terrorists and hostile states, who he said were now “the major vectors of threat”.
Hall said the need to protect the country from online threats – digital channels are being widely used by terrorists and states – is now little different from the need for strong air, naval and land forces. The adviser, appointed by the Home Secretary, was speaking ahead of a speech on Tuesday in which he is expected to say that not paying more attention to the implications of online threats for national security is “a huge mistake”.
Hall, who has been a terrorism law critic for six years, said almost all terrorism in Britain starts online.
He is expected to say, “Digital life is central to national security, not a side idea, and should not be categorized and dismissed by drawing parallels with previous technologies like television that created moral panics and then became integrated into our lives.”
“Consider the fact that… on Roblox, one of the most popular online games (platforms) for children, it is possible to carry out a school massacre or a mosque shooting.
“Consider the chatbot… that encouraged a man to take a crossbow to Windsor to try to kill the late Queen. Consider Dylan Earl, who was recently sentenced to a total of 23 years for being recruited online by the Wagner Group to arrange an arson of a warehouse containing equipment supporting Ukraine.
“All of this is quite distinct from the technological opportunities afforded adversaries for hostile surveillance, disruption through cyberattacks (and) new attack methods.”
The government’s 2025 National Security Strategy, published in June, calls for improvements to UK cyber security and Starmer stressed that “technology is changing the nature of both warfare and homeland security”. But the strategy remains firmly focused on increasing defense spending to 5% of GDP by 2035.
The government has been contacted for comment.
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Hall will also allege that the government has overstepped the protections of online life in the UK and will say that despite an Online Safety Act introduced in 2023, his researchers found an Islamic State-affiliated Facebook account posting an instructional document on “the deadliest places to stab” a body that had been online for at least a month and remained accessible despite being reported on Facebook.
Such material is now illegal, nevertheless, Hall said: “Nothing in the Online Security Act allows authorities to remove content or order tech companies to remove it.
“Despite this, you will hear ministers saying that the Online Protection Act makes the UK the safest place to be online. We need more clarity about what the Online Protection Act can and cannot do. Digital lives are too important to us to be left in the dark.”
Dame Melanie Dawes, chief executive of UK communications regulator Ofcom, told MPs on Monday that she was investigating whether social media companies had adequate systems in place to assess and rapidly remove illegal hate and terrorist content reported to them.
“If we uncover significant compliance concerns, we will not hesitate to pursue formal enforcement action,” she said.
Hall also called for “rebuilding” the laws that regulate surveillance by UK authorities and prevent them from collecting personal information, even if it is posted online without prior authorization.
She said the restrictions are in place under human rights law protecting the right to private life, but is expected to say in her speech: “We need to consider whether our pre-digital laws governing surveillance are unduly restricting the ability of counterterrorism authorities to consider information publicly available online – that is, information we have freely disseminated and/or handed over to tech companies for advertising purposes.”
A government spokesperson said: “The UK has one of the strongest counter-terrorism frameworks in the world, and this Government is committed to ensuring we have the tools and powers we need to stop the spread of violence and hatred against individuals and communities in our society.
“Under the Online Safety Act, digital platforms must also take action to prevent illegal content, including terrorist and violent content, to protect users and our communities from harm online.”
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