Russian cyberattacks on the UK increased by 1,586 per cent in a year after the UK backed Ukraine in the war, a report has revealed.

Moscow escalated its covert cyberwar against Britain and its Nato allies in the wake of their support for Kyiv, a defence think tank found.

The UK was singled out as the primary target for the majority of Russia’s attacks, according to the Henry Jackson Society.

After just seven recorded cyberattacks in 2022, Russian activity against Britain surged to 118 attacks in 2023, the latest year for which figures are available.

Spikes in activity were correlated with UK decisions to increase diplomatic, military and cyber support for Ukraine - strongly suggesting deliberate retaliation by Moscow, it found.

The UK was the sixth most targeted Nato country during the period studied, according to the report which uses data from the Cyber Peace Institute.

It found that two-thirds of Russian cyberattacks on Nato were concentrated on just eight countries, with the UK the primary target.

Russian hackers focused on crucial infrastructure, with 31 per cent of attacks aimed at transport networks and 27 per cent on public administration, it found.

In June 2024, a cyberattack on the Synnovis pathology laboratory - which provides testing services to NHS hospitals in London - disrupted more than 3,000 hospital and GP appointments, delayed a child’s cancer surgery and led to the theft of sensitive patient data.

Security experts described it as one of the most damaging cyberattacks ever to hit the UK’s healthcare system.

It found hostile cyberactivity was correlated with a visit by Ukrainian cyber officials to the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre in January 2023.

Attacks also took place in March 2023 when a UK speech at the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) described Russia as a cyber threat.

There was another burst of activity in May 2023, when Britain announced it would supply Storm Shadow missiles to Ukraine.

The report also warns that Russia is increasingly integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into its cyber operations, making them more sophisticated and harder to detect.

In Ukraine, Russian cyber operations have shut down parts of Ukraine’s power grid, targeted hospitals and civilian infrastructure, and attempted to disrupt air-raid warning systems during missile attacks - actions the International Criminal Court has warned may amount to war crimes.

It calls on the UK and its allies to strengthen its defences against cyber attacks – particularly in transport, public administration and manufacturing, which account for the majority of Russian attacks on Britain.

It also calls for more intelligence sharing between allies and support for Ukraine, which is on the frontline of Russian cyber attacks.

And it urges the UK and its allies to prepare for further escalation from Russia as the war in Ukraine continues.

Michael McManus, the author of the report and the Society’s director of research, said: ‘This data shows Russia’s cyber operations are strategic and retaliatory, not random.

‘Cyberwarfare is now a central pillar of Russia’s confrontation with the UK and Nato. When Britain backs Ukraine, Russia responds with cyberattacks on transport, government and health systems. The scale of the surge in 2023 should be a wake-up call.’