Huge cyber security lab opens in Cheltenham

A cyber security laboratory big enough to test cars, private jets and aircraft engines has opened in Cheltenham.

The facility is over 5,000 sq ft (464 sq metres) and is based near the UK's intelligence agency GCHQ.

The company behind it, IOActive, believes it is the first privately-owned lab of its size anywhere in the world.

It can be used to check how safe vehicles, planes and industrial systems are from cyber attack.

At a launch event, the company showed the scale of the new facility by manoeuvring a cherry picker inside it.

It believes the systems used to control industrial equipment could be vulnerable to hacking.

Ivan Reedman, Director of Secure Engineering at IOActive said: "When you add an intelligent interface - a remote control - suddenly you have all the power for this system controlled remotely. So we want to make sure the interface from the controller to this device is secure and is not vulnerable. In the event that it was - imagine the damage something this size could do."

Previously, the firm has shown it could hack into a car and turn off its engine while it was being driven on a US highway.

Despite that, they remain confident the cyber security industry is making the world safer. Ivan Reedman added: "Firms like ours have done a good job at finding these vulnerabilities and removing them. I'm personally not too worried."

The new facility is part of efforts to create a cyber park close to GCHQ on the outskirts of Cheltenham.

Gloucestershire County Council says: "The Cyber park would be be an area dedicated to cyber-related business and education development that is supported by surrounding health, housing, and leisure facilities."

Follow BBC West on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to: [email protected]