Andy Burnham unveils UK Information Defence Centre to combat AI disinformation at UN

During his debut address to the United Nations General Assembly, UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham announced the establishment of the National Centre for Information Defence.

Today, I’m asking our security chiefs in the UK to begin work on a new National Center for Information Defense to detect, attribute and disrupt these kinds of hostile state information attacks.

‘We are ready to share our understanding of how these actors work and how we can respond.’

The newly minted intelligence hub is specifically designed to detect, attribute, and disrupt hostile state information attacks, including AI-driven deepfakes and coordinated disinformation campaigns.

In his speech, Burnham singled out Russia, warning that the Kremlin spends approximately £1.3 billion annually on digital manipulation.

He noted that Russian state actors routinely deploy bots, fake news websites, and falsified branding having already forged the credentials of 28 major British organizations, including the BBC and several universities to sow domestic division and manufacture narratives of national decline.

To counter these threats, the center will forge a unified defensive front by bringing together UK intelligence agencies, law enforcement bodies, and major tech and social media platforms.

Furthermore, Burnham emphasized that national resilience begins at the grassroots level, noting that citizens facing economic hardship or social inequality are disproportionately vulnerable to online manipulation.

As part of a broader push to secure democratic institutions, the UK intends to share its defensive strategies and expertise with international allies facing similar election interference.