CSA Article 2. Definitions

Increased digitisation and connectivity increase cybersecurity risks, thus making society as a whole more vulnerable to cyber threats and exacerbating the dangers faced by individuals, including vulnerable persons such as children. In order to mitigate those risks, all necessary actions need to be taken to improve cybersecurity in the Union so that network and information systems, communications networks, digital products, services and devices used by citizens, organisations and businesses – ranging from small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), as defined in Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC , to operators of critical infrastructure – are better protected from cyber threats.

Cyberattacks are on the increase and a connected economy and society that is more vulnerable to cyber threats and attacks requires stronger defences. However, while cyberattacks often take place across borders, the competence of, and policy responses by, cybersecurity and law enforcement authorities are predominantly national. Large-scale incidents could disrupt the provision of essential services across the Union. This necessitates effective and coordinated responses and crisis management at Union level, building on dedicated policies and wider instruments for European solidarity and mutual assistance. Moreover, a regular assessment of the state of cybersecurity and resilience in the Union, based on reliable Union data, as well as systematic forecasts of future developments, challenges and threats, at Union and global level, are important for policy makers, industry and users.

In light of the increased cybersecurity challenges faced by the Union, there is a need for a comprehensive set of measures that would build on previous Union action and would foster mutually reinforcing objectives. Those objectives include further increasing the capabilities and preparedness of Member States and businesses, as well as improving cooperation, information sharing and coordination across Member States and Union institutions, bodies, offices and agencies. Furthermore, given the borderless nature of cyber threats, there is a need to increase capabilities at Union level that could complement the action of Member States, in particular in cases of large-scale cross-border incidents and crises, while taking into account the importance of maintaining and further enhancing the national capabilities to respond to cyber threats of all scales.

Cybersecurity is not only an issue related to technology, but one where human behaviour is equally important. Therefore, ‘cyber-hygiene’, namely, simple, routine measures that, where implemented and carried out regularly by citizens, organisations and businesses, minimise their exposure to risks from cyber threats, should be strongly promoted.

Businesses and individual consumers should have accurate information regarding the assurance level with which the security of their ICT products, ICT services and ICT processes has been certified. At the same time, no ICT product or ICT service is wholly cyber-secure and basic rules of cyber-hygiene have to be promoted and prioritised. Given the growing availability of IoT devices, there is a range of voluntary measures that the private sector can take to reinforce trust in the security of ICT products, ICT services and ICT processes.

Modern ICT products and systems often integrate and rely on one or more third-party technologies and components such as software modules, libraries or application programming interfaces. This reliance, which is referred to as a ‘dependency’, could pose additional cybersecurity risks as vulnerabilities found in third-party components could also affect the security of the ICT products, ICT services and ICT processes. In many cases, identifying and documenting such dependencies enables end users of ICT products, ICT services and ICT processes to improve their cybersecurity risk management activities by improving, for example, users’ cybersecurity vulnerability management and remediation procedures.

Organisations, manufacturers or providers involved in the design and development of ICT products, ICT services or ICT processes should be encouraged to implement measures at the earliest stages of design and development to protect the security of those products, services and processes to the highest possible degree, in such a way that the occurrence of cyberattacks is presumed and their impact is anticipated and minimised (‘security-by-design’). Security should be ensured throughout the lifetime of the ICT product, ICT service or ICT process by design and development processes that constantly evolve to reduce the risk of harm from malicious exploitation.

The Union has already taken important steps to ensure cybersecurity and to increase trust in digital technologies. In 2013, the Cybersecurity Strategy of the European Union was adopted to guide the Union’s policy response to cyber threats and risks. In an effort to better protect citizens online, the Union’s first legal act in the field of cybersecurity was adopted in 2016 in the form of Directive (EU) 2016/1148 of the European Parliament and of the Council . Directive (EU) 2016/1148 put in place requirements concerning national capabilities in the field of cybersecurity, established the first mechanisms to enhance strategic and operational cooperation between Member States, and introduced obligations concerning security measures and incident notifications across sectors which are vital for the economy and society, such as energy, transport, drinking water supply and distribution, banking, financial market infrastructures, healthcare, digital infrastructure as well as key digital service providers (search engines, cloud computing services and online marketplaces).