NIS2 directive and physical security

In the face of ever-growing cyber security threats, the need for companies to implement robust protection mechanisms is crucial. This applies all the more to operators of critical infrastructures. The EU is taking this development into account by raising the cyber security of member states to an even higher level with NIS2 - NIS stands for Network and Information Security. A significant change compared to the previous directive concerns the expansion and division into sectors with different levels of criticality. Whether and to what extent companies have to comply with the aforementioned requirements is derived from their affiliation to these sectors and certain threshold values. It is therefore clear that the number of facilities covered by NIS2 will increase significantly. In Germany alone, around 30,000 companies will be subject to the obligation in future.

Affected companies must prove that they are able to ensure sufficient cyber security through risk analysis, information security, assessment and implementation of measures, incident response management, crisis management and training. The NIS2's focus on an "all-hazards approach" also places greater emphasis than before on protecting the physical environments of IT systems against security incidents. The implementation of high-performance locking and access control technology is therefore essential.

Start planning now

NIS2 should have been transposed into German law by October 17, 2024. It is therefore high time for companies to determine whether they are affected by the directive and whether their existing security concepts are sufficient. The white paper "NIS2 requirements for companies: How companies can increase their cyber-physical resilience with digital access control" by Assa Abloy is a practical guide for companies to familiarize themselves with the core requirements of the directive and increase their own cyber-physical resilience. In addition to tips on the step-by-step development of security measures, it also includes a checklist for examining any weak points in locking technology and suggested solutions based on the eCliq, Aperio and Scala locking and access control systems.