Jonathan Evans admits some
threats might be "dogs that don't bark"
MI5 is working to counter
"astonishing" levels of cyber-attacks on UK industry, the organisation's chief
has said.
In his first public speech for two years, Jonathan Evans warned internet "vulnerabilities" were being exploited by criminals as well as states.
The attacks were a threat to the integrity of information, he added.
Mr Evans also warned the London 2012 Olympics was an "attractive target" for terrorist groups, but said security preparations were well under way.
For this reason the Games would not be an easy target even though there was no doubt some terrorist networks had considered carrying out an attack, he said.
In the speech on Monday night, Mr Evans spoke of MI5's efforts to tackle "industrial-scale processes involving many thousands of people lying behind both state sponsored cyber espionage and organised cyber crime".
"Vulnerabilities in the internet are being exploited aggressively not just by criminals but also by states," he said.
"The extent of what is going on is astonishing."
In the past Russia and China have been cited as the countries most involved in state-based attack.
"This is a threat to the integrity, confidentiality and availability of government information but also to business and to academic institutions," Mr Evans said.
"What is at stake is not just our government secrets but also the safety and security of our infrastructure, the intellectual property that underpins our future prosperity and... commercially sensitive information."
London 2012 - One extraordinary year
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