The geopolitical context has changed the perception of digital risk and Europe must question its dependencies and refine its cyber strategy to increase its resilience.
The current geopolitical context has changed the perception of digital risk. Hybrid conflicts, exploitation of cyberspace, data leaks, exploitation of vulnerabilities, attacks on supply chains, destabilization campaigns, manipulation of information: the threat is no longer theoretical. It is strategic. Information systems and the data they contain are now more than ever priority targets, and technological dependence a factor of vulnerability.
In this climate of growing uncertainty, cybersecurity is no longer a technical subject reserved for IT departments. It constitutes a challenge for business continuity, economic and political domination, partner trust and reputation. The unavailability of a cloud service, the interruption of a payment platform or the compromise of a critical digital infrastructure can now cause systemic impacts, which almost systematically go beyond the digital framework to interfere in the physical world.
A European regulatory framework that is getting organized
The NIS 2 Directive recognized this reality by considerably expanding the scope of essential and important entities subject to reinforced risk management and governance obligations. It enshrines a clear principle: the security of networks and information systems is a condition for economic and societal stability.
For its part, the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) recognizes the systemic nature of certain technological providers for the European financial sector. Digital resilience thus becomes an explicit regulatory requirement, brought to the level of management bodies. The notion of cybersecurity goes beyond the “technical” framework to settle at the highest strategic level and invite itself to management committees. Strategies for risk management and protection against the reality of cyber threats now increasingly include governance and corporate cultures alongside cutting-edge technologies, where possible.
Europe, a breeding ground for talent and innovation
But beyond the texts, one observation stands out: Europe lacks neither talent, nor engineers, nor innovative companies. It has a dynamic cyber ecosystem, made up of globally recognized players in data protection, encryption, identity management, threat detection and even secure cloud infrastructures. The problem is neither competence, nor performance, nor innovation. It’s fragmentation. Fragmentation of national markets, fragmentation of players, fragmentation of compliance requirements or even fragmentation of certification schemes.
Despite the existence of the Cybersecurity Act, which laid the foundations for a European cybersecurity certification framework, companies still have to deal with heterogeneous national interpretations and sometimes divergent validation processes. This dispersion slows down the emergence of a true single market in Europe. For business leaders, this situation has a cost: increased audits, increased contractual complexity, extended market access times. On a macroeconomic scale, it prevents Europe from transforming its technological potential into consolidated industrial power.
Certifications, a lever of excellence despite necessary harmonization
The issue is therefore not only that of sovereignty in the symbolic sense of the term. It is that of consolidation. Consolidate an already solid European ecosystem. Consolidate common standards, in particular through European certifications in order to avoid companies having to multiply national procedures (BSZ, CSPN, etc.). Certification uniformly recognized across all Member States would reduce entry barriers, stimulate investment and encourage the emergence of European champions. It also strengthens the confidence of major public and private clients.
In a context where the availability of critical digital services has become as essential as that of physical infrastructure, Europe must speak with one voice. The infrastructures identified as critical by NIS 2: energy, transport, health, finance, digital services, are now based on cloud architectures and complex technological supply chains. Their resilience depends as much on the quality of the solutions as on the coherence of the framework in which they operate. Deciding to work for its strategic independence and resilience means recognizing the value of its own ecosystem, investing in its technological nuggets and removing the obstacles that hinder their expansion.
Consolidating the European market means showing confidence in its companies and its skills.
Europe has the building blocks: innovative companies, talented people, an ambitious regulatory framework. What is still missing is collective mobilization to overcome national silos and make the digital single market fully work. The idea is not to act against other actors, but to assert a European capacity to secure, operate and develop its critical digital infrastructures. It is about reacting in order to promote our expertise, maintain our technological independence and our ability to influence the international digital and economic ecosystem. And it is the responsibility of each actor: institutions, investors, organizations and technology providers.
European resilience in cybersecurity will be the result of strategic consolidation, assumed harmonization and rediscovered confidence in the value of the European ecosystem. For business leaders, the message is clear: future competitiveness will require technological choices aligned with this dynamic. Investing in robust European solutions, supporting normative harmonization and encouraging market consolidation is not a political positioning. It’s a strategic decision.
