14 DAY TRIAL // Today, April 28, the European Union Agency for Network and Information Security (ENISA) is conducting the Cyber Europe 2014 (CE2014) exercise. A total of 600 security actors from all over Europe are taking part in the event.
Over 200 organizations and 400 information security experts take part in the first phase of CE2014, a bi-annual event organized by ENISA in cooperation with European Union member states and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA).
The goal of CE2014 is to enhance cyber capabilities at national level, test existing cooperation procedures and mechanisms for managing crisis situations, analyze the cooperation between the public and private sectors, get a better understanding of public affairs issues related to large-scale cyberattacks, and analyze the escalation and de-escalation processes at various levels.
This is the third edition of Cyber Europe. The first two took place in 2010 and 2012. However, this time, organizers believe that the exercise is larger is scope, scale and complexity.
Today, the technical phase of the exercise is conducted. Later this year, the operational (tactical) and strategic (political) phases will take place.
“As a part of Cyber Europe 2014, ENISA, EU Member States and industry will work together to test the resilience of IT systems and response capacity – at a technical, operational and political level – in case of a serious cross-border cyber-security threat,” ENISA noted in a Q and A for CE2014.
Public sector participants include cyber security agencies, national Computer Emergency Response Teams (CERTs), and various ministries and government institutions. The private sector is represented by energy service companies, ICT vendors and telecommunications companies.
A total of 29 EU and EFTA member states are participating, but ENISA has not made the names of the individual bodies or companies public.
A total of 16 cyber incidents in which the confidentiality, integrity or availability of sensitive information and critical infrastructure could be affected are simulated. Participants have to investigate and analyze the scenarios.
“The incidents in Cyber Europe 2014 are very realistic, mimicking unrest and political crisis at a pan-European level, disrupting services for millions of citizens across Europe,” said Professor Udo Helmbrecht, the executive director of ENISA.
“Cyber Europe 2014 represents a major milestone in the efforts to strengthen cyber crisis cooperation, preparedness and response across Europe. This improves the resilience of Europe’s critical information infrastructures.”
ENISA highlights the fact that the exercise will not have on operation impact of critical information infrastructures, systems or services. Furthermore, the agency says the exercise has been planned for a long time and it hasn’t been influenced by the current situation in Ukraine.
Additional details on CE2014 and the previous editions are available on ENISA’s website.