Cyber threats are growing in speed and sophistication. State-sponsored actors and advanced cybercriminals are increasingly targeting the systems we count on in our day to day lives. From hospitals and energy grids to financial networks, transport, and communications.
In this high-stakes environment, resilience - the ability to withstand shocks, adapt to changing threats, and recover quickly is extremely important.
Resilience: More Than Risk Avoidance
Resilience doesn’t mean eliminating all risks - that’s impossible. It means designing systems and processes that keep essential services running under stress, recover quickly when incidents occur, and adapt to threats.
Recent incidents highlight the stakes. In April 2025, pro-Russian hackers took control of a dam in Norway, opening a floodgate and disrupting operations (The Guardian). Similar campaigns targeted hospitals and water systems in Poland, forcing authorities to pause operations and investigate data exposure. Meanwhile, the pro-Russian cybercrime group NoName057(16), responsible for widespread DDoS attacks, was only recently disrupted by a joint European operation (AP News).
These events show how cyber threats are deeply integrated with geopolitical strategies, blurring the line between peace and conflict. Resilience has become a defining competitive advantage. Cooperation across society, public institutions, private companies, and the technology ecosystem, is a powerful defense that strengthens national and economic security.
To compound this situation, as many organizations deploy PAM solutions across their IT environments, nefarious actors are turning their focus to more vulnerable assets, namely OT environments. Building resilience, therefore, is no longer limited to IT or cybersecurity teams; it extends to logistics, critical infrastructure, healthcare, and data ecosystems.
By working together across these domains, organizations can ensure that essential services continue to operate even under severe pressure.
NIS2: Turning the Law into Action
The NIS2 Directive is a key driver for resilience. By enforcing stronger risk management, incident reporting, and security requirements across essential sectors, NIS2 encourages organizations to embed resilience into daily operations. It also expands coverage to digital infrastructure, public administration, healthcare, and manufacturing, making resilience a shared responsibility.
Across Europe, discussions around technological expertise, regulatory alignment, and innovation are shaping a more integrated security landscape. The EU’s ongoing Omnibus regulation, along with initiatives in quantum technologies, space, and next-generation information networks, highlights the importance of combining policy, innovation, and preparedness.
At the same time, efficiency must not lead to vulnerability. As systems grow more interconnected, a focus on innovation, dual-use technologies, and domestic industrial capabilities is critical.
Collaboration between key European nations, including Germany, the UK, France, and Poland, reinforces the idea that resilience depends on both shared defense efforts and independent technological capability.
Preparing for Tomorrow: Quantum-Safe and Zero Trust
While attacks happening today exploit current vulnerabilities, tomorrow’s challenges will come from advances in quantum computing. Current public-key encryption will eventually be broken, and adversaries are already preparing “harvest now, decrypt later” campaigns.
Post-quantum cryptography (PQC) and quantum-safe solutions, combined with Zero Trust architectures that continuously validate access and assume no implicit trust and replace monolithic structures with more resilient micro services architectures offer a path toward future-proof security and quantum readiness.
Investments in AI, space systems, quantum measurement technologies, and decentralised identities will be vital in maintaining Europe’s technological edge and security independence.
A Holistic, Multi-Layered Defense
Resilience goes beyond technical measures. It requires:
- Executives and boards to take direct responsibility for cyber risk
- Laws like NIS2 to adapt to technology without slowing innovation
- Defense and resilience to involve governments, private companies, civil society, and international partners
- Countering disinformation and psychological operations as a vital part of national security
Broader efforts also focus on hybrid threat preparedness, ensuring self-sufficiency in critical areas like water supply and energy, and strengthening business continuity planning across critical sectors.
Optimizing OT Security with PrivX OT
Building resilience also requires solutions that simplify and strengthen IT/OT security. SSH Communications Security’s PrivX OT solution consolidates every component of your IT/OT system into a secure platform, and provides Just-in-time access, protocol-agnostic connections and secure file transfers for greater visibility, improved safety, optimized availability, and streamlined scalability.
Credentials are managed and secured, vendor access is controlled, workflow approval for jobs is built in for efficient, real-time monitoring and maintenence, and every session is identified with a solid audit trail of activities.
Reach out today to learn more about how PrivX OT can optimize your OT security, align with the NIS2 Directive, and keep both your data and people safe.
Learn more about PrivX OT >>> or download our datasheet>>>
Alina Preda
Alina is SSH’s Marketing Coordinator in the EMEA region, wielding over 7 years of experience as a journalist and content writer across various domains. In 2023, she shifted her focus from media to cybersecurity, where she continues to bring stories to life, craft compelling narratives, and bridge connections.
