“Technology and the internet are overwhelmingly brilliant things for human progress. Unfortunately there will always be people who want to abuse the latest technology. And it’s our job to deal with that dark side.” Robert Hannigan — Former GCHQ Director

Today – Friday April 7 2017 — Mr Robert Hannigan steps down as GCHQ boss. Jeremy Fleming, formerly Deputy Director of MI5, takes over. Follow us on Twitter: @Intel_Today

Robert Hannigan gave a final interview before his departure. The BBC was granted a rare opportunity to film inside “The Doughnut”.

About Russia — “We have been watching Russian cyber activity since the mid 1990s. The scale has changed. They’ve invested a lot of money and people in offensive cyber behaviour and critically they’ve decided to do reckless and interfering things in European countries.” About ISIS and the Internet –“It’s one of their most important assets. As they are defeated on the ground, the ‘online caliphate’ will become more important. They will continue to try to use the media to crowd-source terrorism to get people around the world to go and commit acts of violence on their behalf… There are things we can do to contest ISIL in this media space… but it’s not just for governments to do operations online. It’s for the companies and for the rest of media and society to have the will to drive this material off the internet…” About encryption — “Encryption matters hugely to the safety of citizens and to the economy…. The home secretary is talking about a particular problem – that this strong encryption is being abused by terrorists and criminals… Our best way forward is to sit down with the tech companies…” About Internet Companies — “I think they have moved a long way [but] there’s further to go. When I started the job in 2014 they really were reluctant to accept responsibility for anything they carried on their networks – whether that was terrorism, child sexual exploitation or any other kind of crime.” Will Brexit be a problem? — “I don’t think so, because the intelligence-sharing has never been through EU structures and national security has never been part of the European Union’s remit. It’s simply a statement of fact that we have very, very strong intelligence and security and defence capabilities and we bring a lot to Europe and to our European partners…” About US spying claims — “We get crazy conspiracy theories thrown at us every day. We ignore most of them. On this occasion it was so crazy that we felt we should say so and we have said it’s a ridiculous suggestion.” About Privacy — “Obviously a debate on privacy and greater transparency are good things – but it was perfectly possible to do that and indeed it was happening anyway without the damage that the Snowden revelations did. The same is true of the WikiLeaks disclosures.”

Head of GCHQ demands online firms do more about security

New GCHQ Director — Jeremy Fleming

Jeremy Fleming has been Deputy Director General of MI5 since 2013. He will succeed Robert Hannigan, who announced unexpectedly in January his decision to step down once a successor was in place. Jeremy Fleming has taken up his post today (April 7 2017).

“It is a great privilege to be asked to lead GCHQ. The organisation has a distinguished past and an increasingly important role to play in keeping Britain safe in the digital age.”

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson

On March 20 2017, Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has announced that Jeremy Fleming has been appointed to succeed Robert Hannigan as Director GCHQ, with the agreement of the Prime Minister.

“Jeremy Fleming is a dedicated public servant whose work over two decades in the intelligence services has helped to keep our country safe. I congratulate Jeremy on his appointment as Director of GCHQ at an important time for the service. I know that he will continue the excellent work of Robert Hannigan in leading this outstanding organisation, when the skill and ingenuity of the UK intelligence community are critical to defending Britain from cyber-attacks, terror plots and other activities that threaten us and our allies.”

“From managing cyber risks posed by nation states to preventing terror attacks, keeping our children safe online and supporting our Armed Forces, the exceptional men and women of GCHQ operate on the new frontline of global challenges.” “I’d like to pay tribute to Robert Hannigan, who over the last few years has led GCHQ through the transformation of some of our most important national security capabilities.” “I look forward to building on his legacy and in particular, the role he has played in increasing the transparency of GCHQ’s crucial work and in expanding its cyber mission through the work of the National Cyber Security Centre.”

National Security Adviser Sir Mark Lyall Grant

National Security Adviser Sir Mark Lyall Grant — who chaired the recruitment process — said “Fleming emerged from a strong and competitive field as the outstanding candidate to become the next Director, GCHQ.”

“Fleming is a national security professional of the highest standard, who is widely respected across the national security community, in the UK and overseas.”

Sir Grant also thanked Robert Hannigan for “his excellent leadership of GCHQ over the last three years, including for the important role he played in preparations for the 2016 Investigatory Powers Act and in the setting up of the National Cyber Security Centre.”

Outgoing GCHQ Director, Robert Hannigan said that he was delighted that the Foreign Secretary has appointed Jeremy Fleming to be the new Director.

“I’ve known Jeremy for many years and he is a good friend and colleague. He comes with deep intelligence experience and expertise.”

Jeremy Fleming biography

Cameras Film Inside GCHQ For The First Time

REFERENCES

Foreign Secretary appoints new Director GCHQ — Official website

GCHQ appoints MI5’s Jeremy Fleming as director — Guardian

GCHQ boss: ‘We get crazy theories thrown at us every day’ — BBC News

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UK — Robert Hannigan steps down as GCHQ boss [Interview – Video]