EU professionals can comment on the new roadmap for European cybersecurity

Experts from more than 50 European institutions offer their strategic recommendations in 'Roadmap for Cybersecurity in Europe'. Their interactive website lets professionals from across the EU comment on the document until the end of March.

The roadmap was produced within the Concordia project, which brings together universities, innovation centres, and private companies from 27 European countries.

Cybersecurity is a matter of increasing urgency for European organisations in any sector. Attacks are becoming more frequent and complex and can impact people's livelihoods, an organisation's ability to function (including hospitals, energy providers, and other vital infrastructure), and can even disrupt government operations.

The introduction of innovations such as the cloud and edge computing, new networking technologies and artificial intelligence, the shift to remote work enforced by pandemics, and a lack of qualified professionals and necessary skills - all these factors have a fundamental effect on cybersecurity today. Shortcomings in these areas have been immediately exploited by various threat actors with malicious intent, who have quickly taken advantage of this situation by exploiting social engineering and the software supply chain to mount attacks.

Joint quote from the experts of the Roadmap for Cybersecurity in Europe

Interest has so far focused on technological aspects of cybersecurity. This focus is no longer sufficient, experts say. The new strategy document covers nine fundamental dimensions that affect cybersecurity, showing where we need to focus today. These dimensions include (among other topics) research and innovation, education, economics and investment, law, and certification and standardisation. It is also necessary to consider building a community of experts, institutions, and other centres that will help ensure a secure and resilient European cybersecurity system. 

Professionals can now comment on each of the areas in the document on the interactive website. Comments and additions will be displayed to the authors in a special form and will be considered in the new strategy once the commenting process is closed.