The European Parliament and the council of European national governments have brokered a political agreement to bolster the European Union’s resilience against cyber threats with the Cyber Solidarity Act. This legislative proposal, initially introduced by the European Commission in response to escalating cyberattacks linked to the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, aims to enhance the EU’s capacity to counter cyber threats effectively.
Once endorsed by lawmakers and the European Council, the finalized Cyber Solidarity Act will undergo final voting and approval processes, standard procedures in EU legislative proceedings. The Act encompasses various measures, including the establishment of a European cybersecurity shield, comprising cross-border security operations centers, and the implementation of a cyber emergency mechanism for conducting vulnerability assessments on critical infrastructure across Europe.
Belgian Secretary of State for Digitization, Mathieu Michel, hailed the proposed regulations as pivotal in augmenting the EU’s and member states’ readiness to confront large-scale cyber threats and incidents. The Act emerges in the wake of surging Russian-backed cyber assaults on European critical infrastructure, with the EU recording 241 nation-sponsored attacks targeting 104 software products in 2023, a substantial majority originating from Russian entities.
Additionally, European authorities have agreed on expanding certification initiatives to include managed security services, as outlined by the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity. This comprehensive certification plan seeks to ensure compliance with EU cybersecurity directives like NIS2 and the Cyber Resilience Act, fostering transparency and coherence in certification procedures.
