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The Network and Information Security (NIS) Directive is the first piece of EU-wide legislation on cybersecurity, and its specific aim was to achieve a high common level of cybersecurity across the Member States. While it increased the Member States' cybersecurity capabilities, its implementation proved difficult, resulting in fragmentation at different levels across the internal market. To respond to the growing threats posed with digitalisation and the surge in cyber-attacks, the Commission has ...

Satellite communication is a strategic asset for governments and civil society alike. Complementary to terrestrial networks, it can contribute to seamless digital communication, even when such networks are absent or disrupted. Today, the EU does not have a dedicated infrastructure (including space and ground segments) to offer satellite communication services to governments, the economy or civil society. Several EU global partners and competitors are investing in parallel in such capabilities. On ...

Qualified certificates for website authentication (QWACs) allow users to identify who is behind a website. Aiming to increase QWAC uptake, the Commission has proposed an obligation for web-browsers to recognise them and make them more visible. The proposal has prompted fierce debate. While the Council agrees with the Commission and the Parliament is still debating its position, many stakeholders have raised concerns.

New technologies come with new risks, and the impact of cyber-attacks through digital products has increased dramatically in recent years. Increasingly, consumers have fallen victim to security flaws linked to digital products such as baby monitors, robo-vacuum cleaners, Wi-Fi routers and alarm systems. For businesses, the importance of ensuring that digital products in the supply chain are secure has become pivotal, considering three in five vendors have already lost money owing to product security ...

The present impact assessment (IA) accompanies the proposal for horizontal cybersecurity requirements for products with digital elements. The IA's strong points include a well-substantiated problem definition, an evidence base that appears to be recent and relevant, and a transparent account of the assumptions and limitations of the analysis. Furthermore, an effort has been made in the IA to quantify the total costs and benefits for the manufacturers of products with digital elements. However, the ...

China's full or partial ownership of a large number of strategic infrastructure assets in the European Union has significantly increased the EU's exposure to a non-EU country with a track record of weaponising its growing global economic footprint to achieve political objectives. Moreover, a series of recent cyber-attacks associated with Chinese hackers have put the EU's critical infrastructure at risk of compromise or espionage. Both developments highlight the need to protect the EU's strategic ...

The Monthly Highlights publication provides an overview, at a glance, of the on-going work of the policy departments, including a selection of the latest and forthcoming publications, and a list of future events.

Quantum technologies could be a game-changer in the digital transformation of health care. By enabling much faster and more complex data analysis, they could open the door to the accelerated discovery and development of novel therapeutics, improved diagnostics and treatments, including for rare and complex diseases, genuinely personalised medicine, and better data-driven health policy planning. However, as is also the case in other sectors, quantum technologies come with risks, particularly to cybersecurity ...

This study, commissioned by the European Parliament’s Policy Department for Citizens’ Rights and Constitutional Affairs at the request of the Committee of Inquiry to investigate the use of Pegasus and equivalent surveillance spyware (PEGA), provides a description of the legal framework (including oversight and redress mechanisms) governing the use of Pegasus and equivalent spyware in a selection of Member States.

Protecting critical infrastructure against physical and digital threats is more than ever high on the EU agenda, not least in the light of the recent Nord Stream gas pipelines sabotage. During the November II plenary session, the European Parliament is due to vote on a provisional agreement on rules to enhance critical entities' resilience.