National Security Online Information Team

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Team in the UK Department for Science, Innovation and Technology that monitors online mis- and disinformation it deems a risk to national security and public safety; renamed from the Counter Disinformation Unit in October 2023

National Security Online Information Team

Type Government team in the Security and Online Harms Directorate, Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (abbreviated NSOIT)
Founded October 2023 (renamed from the Counter Disinformation Unit)
Location London
Area served United Kingdom
Services Operational response to online information threats: analysis of publicly available online content and referral of content to social media platforms
Remarks Successor to the Counter Disinformation Cell (2019) and Counter Disinformation Unit (2020–2023)

The National Security Online Information Team (NSOIT) is a team in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) that, in the government's words, "leads the UK government's operational response to information threats online" and responds to "acute misinformation ... and disinformation ... that pose risks to UK national security and public safety".[1] It sits within DSIT's Security and Online Harms Directorate.[2]

The team is the renamed Counter Disinformation Unit (CDU). A DSIT minister told Parliament in March 2024 that "In October 2023 the Counter Disinformation Unit became the National Security and Online Information Team (NSOIT)", and that its revised remit is "to tackle the greatest national security risks facing the UK from mis and disinformation, specifically looking at threats posed by foreign states, risks to elections and from the use of AI and deepfakes".[3] That answer used the form "National Security and Online Information Team", while GOV.UK and later ministerial answers use "National Security Online Information Team".[3][1] Global Government Forum dated the rebrand to November 2023 and described the unit as "linked to Britain's intelligence agencies".[4]

The government says NSOIT "has a blanket ban on referring content from journalists and politicians to social media platforms".[5] Critics, notably Big Brother Watch, argue that the unit goes beyond foreign disinformation, monitors lawful domestic speech and lacks oversight.[6]

Origins

According to DCMS evidence to the UK Covid-19 Inquiry, a DCMS policy team on disinformation was first set up in March 2018, following the Salisbury poisonings.[7] DCMS formally established the cross-Whitehall Counter Disinformation Cell (CDC) in March 2019, after Downing Street gave the Culture Secretary the lead on overall counter-disinformation policy. The CDC was a temporary structure, led by DCMS and drawing on the Cabinet Office, Home Office and Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. It was trialled during the European Parliament elections in April 2019 and stood up for the December 2019 general election.[8] During the 2019 election activation, DCMS led coordination and platform engagement, and "strategic communications were led by the CO national security communications team", the Cabinet Office's National Security Communications Team.[7]

DCMS stood up the CDC again on 5 March 2020 for the COVID-19 pandemic. Over 2020 the cell evolved into the Counter Disinformation Unit, a permanent DCMS team.[8] After the machinery of government changes announced on 7 February 2023, the team moved to the new DSIT; the formal transfer of responsibilities took effect on 3 May 2023.[8] It was renamed NSOIT in October 2023.[3] Big Brother Watch says the rebrand followed its 2023 Ministry of Truth investigation "and the significant backlash that it prompted from parliamentarians, the press and the public".[6]

Activities

NSOIT analyses "publicly available information, typically from social media websites, using internal and external tools", and may notify platforms of content that it believes breaches their moderation policies.[1] Its compliance policy says it does not flag content from "journalists, political parties Parliamentarians or elected officials".[2] The GOV.UK privacy notice states that, "following a fair and open tender process", NSOIT appointed The Global Strategy Network Limited to help analyse social media platforms.[1] An Information Commissioner's Office decision notice of 11 November 2025 records that DSIT disclosed, with redactions, a report on the 2024 general election produced "by Crisp Thinking for NSOIT".[9]

The Telegraph reported in August 2024 that the unit had been brought in to monitor social media during the riots that followed the Southport killings.[10] Big Brother Watch says that since March 2020 the remit of "the CDU/NSOIT" has expanded to cover the May 2021 local elections, COP-26, the Northern Ireland Assembly elections and the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[6]

Links with the intelligence community

DCMS's Inquiry evidence states that the government's Disinformation Board, which oversaw counter-disinformation work aimed at UK audiences, was attended by the UK Intelligence Community, "primarily GCHQ", and that the CDC engaged with the intelligence community where its work involved possible state-sponsored disinformation.[8] Big Brother Watch argues that "adopting unaccountable intelligence-style practices within DSIT to monitor, record and extrajudicially censor members of the public's speech domestically is highly controversial".[6]

In February 2024 the DSIT minister Jonathan Berry (Viscount Camrose) told Parliament that NSOIT "looks for large-scale attempts to pollute the information environment, generally as a result of threats from foreign states". Asked why it worked without oversight from the Intelligence and Security Committee, he said it was primarily scrutinised by ministers.[4]

Timeline

  • March 2018: DCMS disinformation policy team established after the Salisbury poisonings.[7]
  • March 2019: DCMS formally establishes the Counter Disinformation Cell.[8]
  • April and November–December 2019: CDC trialled for the European Parliament elections and stood up for the general election, with the Cabinet Office National Security Communications Team leading strategic communications.[8][7]
  • 5 March 2020: CDC stood up for COVID-19; during 2020 it evolves into the permanent Counter Disinformation Unit.[8]
  • February–May 2023: The team moves from DCMS to DSIT.[8]
  • October 2023: Renamed the National Security Online Information Team.[3]
  • 14 March 2024: Parliamentary answer confirms the name change and the new remit (foreign states, elections, AI and deepfakes).[3]
  • 16 April 2024: NSOIT privacy notice published on GOV.UK.[1]
  • August 2024: Unit monitors social media during the riots that followed the Southport killings.[10]
  • November 2024: Big Brother Watch briefing to parliamentarians on NSOIT.[6]
  • 11 November 2025: ICO decision notice on DSIT's redactions to the Crisp Thinking report.[9]

People

  • Sarah Connolly – Director for Security and Online Harms, first at DCMS and then at DSIT, the directorate that contains the CDU and NSOIT.[11][2] The Disinformation Board was chaired by the DCMS Director of Security and Online Harms.[7] She became Director for Digital Infrastructure at DSIT in January 2024.[12]
  • Claire Fradley – Head of the Counter Disinformation Unit, Security and Online Harms (June 2021 – May 2023).[13]
  • Beth Lambert – Head of Counter Disinformation, DCMS (2021–2022).[14]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, National Security Online Information Team: privacy notice GOV.UK, published 16 April 2024, last updated 31 October 2025, accessed 21 October 2026.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, NSOIT Data Protection and Compliance Policy (redacted), released under FOI2024-00576 Big Brother Watch, May 2024, para 1.4, accessed 21 October 2026.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Saqib Bhatti, National Security Online Information Team: written question 17886, answered 14 March 2024 UK Parliament, accessed 21 October 2026.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Jack Aldane, UK minister defends government's rebranded Counter Disinformation Unit Global Government Forum, 26 February 2024, accessed 21 October 2026.
  5. ↑ Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, National Security Online Information Team: written question 35204, answered 11 March 2025 Parallel Parliament, accessed 21 October 2026.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 Big Brother Watch, Briefing note for parliamentarians on disinformation and the Government's National Security Online Information Team Big Brother Watch (critical), November 2024, accessed 21 October 2026.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 Susannah Storey, Witness statement of Susannah Storey (INQ000183331) UK Covid-19 Inquiry, Module 1, statement for DCMS/DSIT dated 21 April 2023, paras 1.2–1.3, 1.35 and 1.44–1.45, accessed 21 October 2026.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 8.7 Susannah Storey, Witness statement of Susannah Storey (INQ000474309) UK Covid-19 Inquiry, Module 4, statement for DCMS dated 2 August 2024, published 21 January 2025, paras 0.1, 1.5 and 1.16–1.20, accessed 21 October 2026.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Information Commissioner's Office, Decision notice IC-374825-D9K4 (Department for Science, Innovation & Technology) ICO, 11 November 2025, accessed 21 October 2026.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 The Telegraph, Secretive government agency brought in to monitor social media amid riots The Telegraph, 7 August 2024, accessed 21 October 2026.
  11. ↑ Centre for Science and Policy, Sarah Connolly University of Cambridge, accessed 21 October 2026.
  12. ↑ GOV.UK, Sarah Connolly GOV.UK, accessed 21 October 2026.
  13. ↑ Claire Fradley, archived LinkedIn profile, archive.ph/rRUGd; archive.ph/ogXi3.
  14. ↑ Beth Lambert, LinkedIn profile.
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