Britain warned Iran-linked cyber attack on power plant is a ‘wake-up call’ on threat of Islamic Republic

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'We are an enemy as far as they’re concerned. And we need to recognise that,' the UK's former energy chief warned

The UK has been warned that an Iran-linked cyber attack on a UK power plant should serve as a “wake-up call” over the threat posed by the Islamic Republic.

Angela Knight, former head of Energy UK, said the incident should force policymakers to take a “broader and deeper” look at Tehran’s attitude towards Britain and its ability to use cyber warfare to disrupt critical infrastructure.

Last month, hackers believed to be working on behalf of Tehran targeted the British facility as a wave of cyber attacks struck US water infrastructure.

Speaking to GB News, Ms Knight said Iran viewed Britain as closely aligned with the United States and therefore as an enemy of the regime.

“Iran, of course, always bracketed together the US and the UK,” she said.

“They see us, that is the UK, as being hand-in-glove with America, and they see the US as being the great big enemy to Iran.”

Ms Knight said she was therefore not surprised that Iranian-linked actors had targeted both American and British interests.

“If we did need a bit of a wake-up call, as far as policymakers are concerned, this is one of them,” she said.

She warned that the incident could prompt a significant reassessment of the UK’s relationship with Tehran.

“I also believe that this will probably have caused thinking about Iran and the UK in a rather broader and deeper manner, and what it can do and what their view is of us than may well have been the case,” Ms Knight said.

The former Energy UK chief warned against assuming that a more conciliatory approach towards Tehran would necessarily result in better relations.

“You get the feeling that, well, if we’re just nice to them, they’ll be nice to us,” she said, warning: “That isn’t the case.”

“We are an enemy as far as they’re concerned. And we need to recognise that.”

Ms Knight said cyber attacks offer hostile states a powerful way to target Britain without resorting to conventional military action.

“And this is one very good weapon that they’ve got against us, i.e. the use of cyber and the ability of cyber to disrupt,” she said.

“That’s something which we really have to watch for and guard very strongly against.”

The warning comes as Britain faces growing concerns over the vulnerability of critical national infrastructure to hostile states, with energy facilities potentially presenting an attractive target for cyber operations.

Ms Knight said the attack should encourage ministers to focus on how Iran actually views Britain, rather than how policymakers might hope the relationship could develop.

The incident comes amid heightened tensions between Britain and Iran, with Tehran increasingly using cyber operations and other forms of asymmetric activity as part of its confrontation with Western states.

Ms Knight said the UK must recognise the threat and ensure its energy infrastructure is adequately protected.

“We need to recognise that. And this is one very good weapon that they’ve got against us,” she said.