John Bassett OBE
Position: Associate Fellow, Cyber Security
John Bassett worked for GCHQ from 1991 to 2010 in a range of posts at home and overseas. As head of GCHQ's London office he frequently represented GCHQ at COBR meetings between 2004 and 2007 and attended ministerial groups on foreign and security issues. Most recently he was posted to the British Embassy in Washington DC, where he liaised with the US Government on cyber security and related issues.
Interests include cyber security, the future of network defence, interception legislation and civil liberties, the TransAtlantic security relationship, crisis management, resilience and counter-insurgency. John is also interested in Roman military history and the American Civil War. He has walked many civil war battlefields, especially those associated with Grant's overland campaign.
John Bassett was educated at Bristol Grammar School, Oxford University (MA in Classics) and the University of the West of England (MSc in Information Technology). He was awarded an OBE in 2003.
RUSI articles and analysis by this author
Cyber-Security: International Controls and Standards
8 Mar 2011
William Hague's speech at the Munich Security Conference highlighted the importance of cyber-security in international relations, and raised questions of an appropriate international response to the increasingly viable threat
Cyber-attacks on the stock exchange: Threat, motivation and response
3 Feb 2011
Increased media speculation about the possibility of a cyber-attack on the London or New York stock exchanges has ignored the nature of the threat, which is likely to seek to cause disruption rather than make money, and the counter-measures that can hinder a catastrophic attack
Cyber Priorities After SDSR 2010
19 Oct 2010
The UK government's declared focus on cyber-security should focus on three priorities: building capability, nurturing national and international partnerships, and building an effective network defence.