A new cyberwarfare centre is set to launch on 10 March, according to the government.

A Parliamentary question revealed that the new Cyber Security Operations Centre (CSOC) will have a staff of 19.

CSOC, based at GCHQ in Cheltenham, will monitor online threats against UK infrastructure and respond if necessary, according to briefing documents.

The centre is one of the central planks of the UK’s National Security Strategy, which was updated in June this year to improve online defence and attack capabilities.

At the time GCHQ stated that the task of securing the UK was not something that could be “soley delivered by GCHQ’s experts, or the new CSOC”, but that partnerships with industry players and the education of individual users would also be vital for success.