Written question asked by James Cartlidge (Conservative) on Thursday, 9 January 2025, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 13 January 2025. It was answered by Luke Pollard (Labour) on Friday, 17 January 2025 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Official Secrets: Disclosure of Information

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to help prevent the leaking of military secrets during online war games.

Answer: Unauthorised release of information endangers our national security and makes protecting the United Kingdom harder. As such it is contrary to the ethos and policies of the Ministry of Defence, and we take the unauthorised release of information very seriously. Our policy stresses that information should be handled and distributed based on need-to-know, where access to sensitive information is no wider than necessary for the efficient conduct of official work, and is limited to those with a business need and the appropriate personnel security clearance. This approach is reinforced in mandatory training and through our Cyber Security Awareness, Behaviour and Culture campaign, which reinforces the importance of managing online footprints and not sharing information inappropriately.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 22953
Session: 2024-26
Subjects: Disclosure of information Defence Internet Official secrets Video games
Link: View this Written question on www.parliament.uk