Photo © Anatoly Vartanov – Fotolia
(BRUSSELS) – An EU deal to strengthen Europe’s cybersecurity sector and provide stronger protection against cyber-attacks could trigger investment of EUR 1.8 billion by 2020, the Commission said on Tuesday.
According to a recent survey, at least 80% of European companies have experienced at least one cybersecurity incident over the last year and the number of security incidents across all industries worldwide rose by 38% in 2015.
The new public-private partnership with industry signed by the Commission – art of a series of new initiatives to better equip Europe against cyber-attacks – is expected to strengthen the competitiveness of its cybersecurity sector.
The Commission says it wants to reinforce cooperation across borders, and between all actors and sectors active in cybersecurity, and also to help develop innovative and secure technologies, products and services throughout the EU.
Digital Single Market. Commissioner Andrus Ansip said: “Europe has to be ready to tackle cyber-threats that are increasingly sophisticated and do not recognise borders. Today, we are proposing concrete measures to strengthen Europe’s resilience against such attacks and secure the capacity needed for building and expanding our digital economy.”
Digital Economy Commissioner Guenther H. Oettinger, who signed the partnership in Strasbourg today,said Europe needed high quality, affordable and interoperable cybersecurity products and services, and there was now a major opportunity for Europe’s cybersecurity industry to compete in a fast-growing global market:
“We call on Member States and all cybersecurity bodies to strengthen cooperation and pool their knowledge, information and expertise to increase Europe’s cyber resilience. The milestone partnership on cybersecurity signed today with the industry is a major step,” he said.
The EU plan includes launching the European public private partnership on cybersecurity. The EU will invest EUR 450 million in this partnership under its Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme. Cybersecurity market players, represented by the European Cyber Security Organisation (ECSO), are expected to invest three times more.
The partnership will include members from national, regional and local public administrations, research centres and academia. The aim of the partnership, says the Commission, is to foster cooperation at early stages of the research and innovation process and to build cybersecurity solutions for various sectors, such as energy, health, transport and finance.
The Commission also sets out a number of measures to tackle what is seen a fragmented EU cybersecurity market. Currently, an ICT company might need to undergo different certification processes to sell its products and services in several Member States. The Commission says it will to look into a possible European certification framework for ICT security products.
There are many innovative European SMEs in niche markets (such as cryptography) and in well-established markets with new business models (such as antivirus software), but they often have difficulty in scaling up their operations. The Commission wants to ease access to finance for smaller businesses working in the field of cybersecurity and will explore different options under the EU investment plan.
The Network and Information Security Directive, which is expected to be adopted by the European Parliament tomorrow, already creates a network of Computer Security Incident Response Teams across the EU in order to rapidly react to cyber threats and incidents. It also establishes a ‘Cooperation Group’ between Member States, to support and facilitate strategic cooperation as well as the exchange of information, and to develop trust and confidence.
The Commission has today called on EU Member States to make the most of these new mechanisms and to strengthen coordination when and where possible. The Commission will propose how to enhance cross-border cooperation in case of a major cyber-incident. Given the speed with which the cybersecurity landscape is evolving, the Commission will also bring forward its evaluation of the European Union Agency for Network and Information Security (ENISA). This evaluation will assess whether ENISA’s mandate and capabilities remain adequate to achieve its mission of supporting EU Member States in boosting their own cyber resilience. The Commission also examines how to strengthen and streamline cybersecurity cooperation across different sectors of the economy, including in cybersecurity training and education.
Further information
Commission Decision to establish a contractual public private partnership on cybersecurity (cPPP)
