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10 Internet Safety tips for Parents/Employees online

ENISA has published two flyers with 10 hands-on, Internet safety tips and advice: one for Parents, and one for Employees.

The 10 Internet safety tips for parents have been developed with the aim of helping parents and guardians to make the  Internet a safe and positive experience for their children. The 2nd flyer with 10 information security tips for employees have been developed with the aim of focusing employees' attention on information security and allowing them to recognise IT security concerns and respond accordingly.  All Awareness Raising publications can be found here:   Stay tuned - subscribe to RSS feeds of ENISA news items http://www.enisa.europa.eu/media/news-items/news-wires/RSS

SecureCloud 2010 agenda announced

SecureCloud 2010 is the first European event to focus specifically on state-of-the-art practices designed to promote security, privacy, and trust in cloud computing. The SecureCloud 2010 conference agenda has now been announced, to be held March 16 – 17 in Barcelona, Spain.

Among the keynote speeches are Dr. Udo Helmbrecht, Executive Director of ENISA and Pamela Jones Harbour, Commissioner of the US Federal Trade Commission. SecureCloud 2010 workshops will include sessions and panels that tackle a broad array of immediate cloud security issues. Security and Data Protection in the Cloud• MobileCloud Security• Government Uses of Cloud Security• Fighting Fraud in the Cloud• Cloud Service Certification and Assurance The complete conference agenda can be found at:http://www.cloudsecurityalliance.org/sc2010.html The event is free, but space is limited, so participants are encouraged to register early: http://securecloud2010.eventbrite.com/ “Cloud computing presents its own unique security risks and threats that we’re still in the process of understanding,” Dr. Udo Helmbrecht, Executive Director of ENISA commented. “ The conference is hosted by the Cloud Security Alliance (CSA), European Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA), the IEEE Standards Association, and ISACA, four of the organizations shaping the future of Cloud Computing Security.  

Security Issues in Cross-border e-Authentication

The Agency has launched a new report on Security Issues in Cross-border Electronic Authentication. Improving the interoperability of electronic identification and authentication systems is a European task and a task for all Member States. ENISA analysed the current situation and assessed the security risks of electronic authentication in cross-border solutions. To visualize these risks, two different projects offering cross-border authentication have been examined and evaluated, Netcards/EHIC and Stork.

  The Agency has launched a new report on Security Issues in Cross-border Electronic Authentication. Improving the interoperability of electronic identification and authentication systems is a European task and a task for all Member States. ENISA analysed the current situation and assessed the security risks of electronic authentication in cross-border solutions. To visualize these risks, two different projects offering cross-border authentication have been examined and evaluated, Netcards/EHIC and Stork. The public services of egovernment  and health care providers are increasingly offering citizens in EU Member States electronic access to these services. These e-services are usually tailored at a national level with specific technologies, security concepts and business logic. In addition, these e-services are governed by the data protection laws of the individual Member State.   Common goals The goals of these systems are identical for all Member States: managing identities, improving administrative efficiency, improving accessibility and user-friendliness, reducing abuse and fraud and, above all, reduction of costs. Yet, in most cases, these systems can only be accessed from within the Member State and by citizens of that state.   Making the digital internal market functioning European citizens who move freely through Member States face the problem that their eID documents from their home state do not allow access to electronic services of another Member State in which they are currently present. This may be an undue restriction on EU citizens’ use of these services. Administrations, at the other hand, cannot provide services to European citizens from other Member States with the same ease and efficiency as their own citizens. So there is a need to extend these digital services beyond national borders and beyond the user group of national citizens. At the same time, European and national data protection laws and regulations must be respected and may not be undermined by cross-border distribution of personal data.   Cross Border interoperability - A task for Europe Improving the interoperability of electronic identification and authentication systems is thus a European task and a task for all Member States. This report visualizes the security risks of electronic authentication in cross-border solutions, in two different projects. -          The European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) facilitates access to health care services for insured European citizens during temporary stays abroad. NETC@RDS for eEHIC ID is a pan-European project supported by the EU eTEN programme. It facilitates medical treatment of European citizens by using an electronically readable European health insurance card. -          STORK (Secure idenTity acrOss boRders linKed) is a large-scale pilot project in the ICT Policy Support programme to simplify administrative formalities by providing secure online access to public services across EU borders.   Critical success factors: ·        establishing the legal and contractual framework ·        identifying the citizen through credentials ·        authenticating system participants across borders ·        making online connections secure ·        bridging technological differences ·        establishing and agreeing on a common security policy. By covering these factors in electronic cross-border authentication, the national goals of eID solutions can be extended successfully to a pan-European solution. For full report  

"Member States need holistic cyber security strategies"

The ENISA Executive Director, Dr. Udo Helmbrecht, stressed the importance of holistic national cyber security strategies speaking at the first Critical Information Infrastructure Protection - CIIP - International Conference in Madrid. These strategies should be an integral part of an overall EU cyber security strategy, Dr Helmbrecht underlined.

The Executive Director advised Member States and the private sector to work closely together to implement  these cyber security strategies. This should be done through sharing of information, deployment of good practices (e.g. on incident reporting and handling) and national exercises. He also urged all Member States to establish and operate governmental CERTs  (Computer Emergency Response Teams) the 'digital fire brigades'. Bringing national CERTs together to  co-operate and share information is necessary to respond to national, pan European or even global incidents and threats. ENISA will continue underpinning Member States and private sector efforts to  enhance the resilience and security of their networks. This year ENISA will  plan and execute the first pan European exercise. Additionally, the Agency develops a number of good practices and works with Member States to deploy them. More information about the ENISA Resilience Program: More information about the ENISA CERTs Program: Dr Helmbrecht's full speech at the CIIP-conference.

Leon conclusions: ENISA to bridge gap between technology & policy

Leon conference conclusions: ENISA to bridge the gap between technology and policy

Conclusions (highlights) by the participants to the Trust in the Information Society conference (10-11 February Leon, Spain): - Confirm the essential importance of the development of Trust in the Information Society for economic growth, prosperity and the promotion of our societal values - Endorse the analysis and recommendations presented in the RISEPTIS report - Emphasise the urgency to develop a platform for effective cooperation on trust issues between stakeholders in RTD, industry, society, law and regulation and education and awareness. and recommend to the European Commission and Member States - To give urgent attention to these "Conclusions of Leon" in their upcoming decisions on the European Digital Agenda and Granada Strategy as well as in other relevant discussions, like those to be held at the WCIT 2010 in Amsterdam. - To call upon ENISA, in close cooperation with Member States, the European Commission and other stakeholders, to actively support European research related to security and trust in ICT, in particular in bridging the gap between technology and policy, thus ensuring efficient uptake of research results in operational environments. - To strengthen international cooperation to promote and develop Trust in the Information Society at a global scale." For full conclusions, pls refer to: Spain 'Trust in Information Society' Conclusions  For the conference videos and presentations: •    http://www.trustworthyict-inteco.webcastlive.es•    http://trustworthyict.inteco.es/index.php/en/presentations The Conference was attended by more than 260 persons from different public administrations, industry, investigation and innovation, and also from different  organizations representing the  users of the European scope from the Information Security sector.  

New top security advisors (the PSG) appointed

New Permanent Stakeholders’ Group of top security advisors appointed. As of today, a new composition of 30 top security experts start their term of office as members of the Permanent Stakeholders’ Group (PSG), giving advice to the EU’s ‘cyber security’ Agency ENISA-the European Information and Security Agency. The PSG is a group of leading security experts that gives advice to the Agency Executive Director, e.g. in drawing up a proposal for the Agency's Work Programme.

    The selected applicants are appointed ad personam as PSG Members. That means that they do neither represent a country, nor a company, but are selected upon basis of expertise and personal merits. The term of office for the members is 2,5 years, i.e. 2010-2012.The first meeting of the new PSG takes place on 24th March, 2010, in Athens. A list of the appointed members can be downloaded here. The Executive Director Dr. Udo Helmbrecht comments:  “I am pleased to announce the appointment of 30 members of the next PSG. In my vision for the Agency, I am convinced Europe needs more cooperation and dialogue with all security stakeholders. The PSG plays an important role in this respect. I am looking forward to working closely with each and every member of the PSG. I am confident the expertise, insight and broad experience the members will bring to the PSG will be beneficial to the Agency. As Chair of the PSG, I am determined to take every opportunity to involve the PSG in taking ENISA further and, in particular, to carefully consider their advice before taking strategic decisions.” Background: On 30 June 2009, a Call for Expression of Interest for Membership of the PSG was issued, with a deadline which expired on 30, November, 2009. Subsequent to a short listing of a number of applicants the Executive Director of ENISA, Dr. Helmbrecht selected 30 experts, informed the Agency Management Board of his decision and then appointed the experts ad personam as members of the 2010-2012 PSG.   For the full list of the new PSG members, and further details, please refer to: http://www.enisa.europa.eu/about-enisa/structure-organization/psg/members For interviews: Ulf Bergstrom, Spokesperson, ENISA, press@enisa.europa.eu, Mobile: + 30 6948 460143, or Kjell Kalmelid, Expert, Stakeholders Relations Unit, kjell.kalmelid@enisa.europa.eu Subscription: To subscribe to press releases, pls use the RSS feed: https://www.enisa.europa.eu/media/press-releases/press-releases/RSS

Heads of EU Agencies meet Barroso

The Heads of the EU Agencies, met on 17 February with the European Commission President José Manuel Barroso. The objective is to discuss ways to strengthen the partnership between EU Agencies and the European Commission, the European Parliament and the Council. Moreover, they will share their views on the EU’s future approach to the governance of the Agencies.

Mr. Barroso, President of the European Commission, will deliver a keynote speech, highlighting the role and contribution of EU regulatory agencies in the context of a future framework for the EU regulatory agencies. In its press release“European agencies – the way forward” of March 2008, the European Commission called upon the European Parliament and Council to give a new momentum to the development of a clear and coherent vision on the place of agencies in European governance. Discussions at the Heads of EU agencies meeting will feed into the inter-institutional dialogue on the future governance of the EU Agencies. This includes an evaluation of existing agencies and reflections on changes which could be made to improve the system in the future. Representatives from the European Parliament and from the Spanish Presidency of the European Union will also attend the meeting. Meeting agenda. EU Agencies press release EU Agencies' joint brochure -explaining our joint missions for Europe President Barroso's speech at the meeting.

Safer Internet Day - 09/02/2010

"Think B4 U post!"

ENISA supports the  'Safer Internet Day' campaign, on Tuesday, 9, February, which is organised by Insafe each year in February to promote safer  and more responsible use of online technology and mobile phones. The target audience is children and young people in particular. The topic for 2010 is "Think B4 U post!". Anything anyone posts online remains there for an indefinite period and accessible for everyone.  This can have serious consequences. Children and teenagers need to be made aware that they can control their online identity. Do you know if your kids:- use the privacy settings offered by social networking services?- select friends online that they can trust?- publish their own photos after thinking carefully about the potential consequences?- publish pictures of their friends with their permission? Watch seven 20 seconds campaign videoclips at:http://www.saferinternet.org/web/guest/safer-internet-day Furthermore, the Agency's latest report on mobile social networking analyses the trends of 'life online'. The study also underlines many hands-on, practical advice on how to surf safer.

Instantly online-17 golden rules for mobile social networks

Instantly online-17 golden rules to combat online risks and for safer surfing mobile social networks The EU ‘cyber security’ Agency - ENISA (the European Network and Information Security Agency) today presents a new report on accessing social networks over mobile phones, ‘Online as soon as it happens“. The report points out the risks and threats of mobile social networking services, e.g. identity theft, corporate data leakage and reputation risks of mobile social networks. The report also gives 17 ‘golden rules’ on how to combat these threats.

     Online Social Networking Sites (SNSs) have had an exceptional growth trend on Internet. 211Mn users (out of 283 Mn) in Europe use SNS, and, primarily, Facebook in 11/17 countries studied. The modern way of staying in touch with business or personal contacts is through SNS and other digital tools. Consequently, the ways people meet, share opinions, communicate information and ideas is changing. With growing popularity of SNS, the demand for instant, continuous access over the mobile phone has increased-i.e. mobile social networks (MSN). More than 65 Mn users now access the social network Facebook over their mobile device. MSN users are 50% more active than non-mobile users, and are estimated to be 134 Mn in Europe by 2012. Many MSN users also use their phone as a backup device for business mails, personal data, contacts, pictures, and access codes. As a consequence, a lost mobile phone can cause serious damage, e.g. when illegitimately used to access MSNs. Many mobile phones come pre-packaged at purchase, with built in MSN applications i.e. ‘on-deck’ services.Several stories from Italy, France, Spain, Greece, UK, witness that many SNS/MSN users are largely unaware of security risks, privacy issues and threats related to misuse of the information put online in an SNS and of proper online privacy protection. A number of unique MSN risks/threats are identified in the report. The ENISA report gives an overview of the situation and underlines that in particular MSN users need awareness on how to safer use social networks on a mobile phone to avoid unexpected and damaging consequences. Risks include identity theft, and serious damage to personal or corporate reputation, or data leakage. Two samples case studies: • Fake profile on Facebook. A professor at Turin University discovered someone else had created a profile for him at Facebook with offensive features, affecting his reputation.• Data leakage/corporate reputation. After a 2008 incident, Virgin Atlantic airlines later dismissed 13 staff members who had posted comments on Facebook which e.g. criticised the cleanliness of the company’s fleet and of its passengers. Similarly, British Airlines check-in staff at Gatwick posted messages on Facebook saying e.g. travellers were ‘smelly’ and criticised the chaotic operations at Heathrow.The paper also gives a comprehensive view of the SNS world under the lens of the European directive on data protection (Dir. 95/46/EC). The Executive Director of ENISA, Dr. Udo Helmbrecht, comments: “This report provides practical, hands-on advice to the users of how to more safely be online, anywhere and anytime, when enjoying mobile social networks.” The paper includes 17 practical ‘golden rules’. Samples include:- Remember to log out from the social network once your navigation is over. - Do not to allow the social network to remember your password (this function is called ‘Auto-complete’).- Do not mix your business contacts with your friend contacts.-Report immediately stolen/lost mobile phone with contacts, pictures, or personal data in its memory - Set the profile privacy level properly. For all recommendations, please download the full report. For interviews: Ulf Bergstrom, Spokesperson, ENISA, press@enisa.europa.eu, Mobile: + 30 6948 460143, or Isabella Santa, Senior Expert Awareness Raising, ENISA, awareness FAQs to the report:   Subscription: To subscribe to press releases, pls use the RSS feed: https://www.enisa.europa.eu/media/press-releases/press-releases/RSS

1st Pan European CIIP exercise

Member States take a decisive step toward the first pan European Exercise on CIIP

In a workshop organised by ENISA, European Commission and the Joint Research Centre -JRC, in Brussels on 28.01, EU Member States reaffirmed their commitment to participate in the first pan European Exercise on Critical Information Infrastructure Protection, 'CIIP' in accordance with Tallinn Ministerial Declaration. Member States asked ENISA and JRC to plan and execute a desk-top exercise. This should involve as many Member States as possible. The Agency, with JRC and Member States, will now prepare the planning of the exercise. The ultimate objective is to execute it in November this year. ENISA recently published a good practice guide on conducting national exercices on CIIP. This guide will help the Agency to plan and execute the first pan European Exercise.

Focus article: the third ENISA Anti-Spam Measures Survey

“What Are the Measures Used by European Providers to Reduce the Amount of Spam Received by Their Customers?"

To read the interview please click here

ED speech at the 3rd Athens International Forum on Security

The Executive Director of ENISA will give an opening plenary speech on the 27th January at the 3rd Athens International Forum on Security (AIFS 2010).

You can find more information about the AIFS 2010 event here.

Spam Survey 2009 - the fight against spam

Spam Survey 2009: status report of the fight against spam in Europe The EU ‘cyber security’ Agency - ENISA (the European Network and Information Security Agency) presents its new, 3rd ‘spam report’, i.e. anti-spam measures implemented by European Internet service providers (ISPs). The report looks at spam budgets, impact of spam and spam management. No significant progress is reported in the fight against spam.

       The survey targeted email service providers of different types and sizes, and received replies from 100 respondents from 30 different countries, throughout the EU (26 /27 EU Member States); and 80 million mailboxes managed. The survey analyses how e-mail service providers combat spam in their networks, and identifies the state of art in the fight against spam. Some of the key findings are:- Less than 5% of all email traffic is delivered to mailboxes. [This means the main bulk of mails, 95%, is spam.]This is a very minor change, from 6%, in earlier ENISA reports. - 70% of respondents consider spam extremely significant or significant for their security operations. - Over ¼ of respondents had spam accounting for >10% of helpdesk calls.- Among very small providers, 1/4 of respondents allocate anti-spam budgets of over EUR €10,000 per year.- 1/3 of very large providers dedicate anti-spam budgets >EUR 1 Mn/year.- Fighting spam has reached a certain level of maturity. - ISPs are using various kinds of measures: technical, awareness, policies and legal framework. Blacklists are the most commonly used anti-spam tool. On average 5 kinds of measures are used.- ISPs consider spam prevention as a competitive advantage to attract and retain customers. However, spam is not a critical factor. The Executive Director of ENISA, Dr Udo Helmbrecht concludes: “Spam remains an unnecessary, time consuming and costly burden for Europe. Given the number of spam messages observed, I can only conclude more dedicated efforts must be undertaken. Email providers should be better at monitoring spam and identifying the source. Policy-makers and regulatory authorities should clarify the conflicts between spam-filtering, privacy, and obligation to deliver.” Next steps: ENISA will deliver a report on botnets to study root causes of spam by the end of 2010. Botnets are networks of thousands of remotely controlled computers, secretly infected by malicious programs “bots”, for distributing spam and criminal activities. Download the full survey and slides. For interviews: Ulf Bergstrom, Spokesman, ENISA, press@enisa.europa.eu, Mobile: + 30 6948 460143, or Pascal Manzano, Security Policy Expert. FAQs: Interview re Spam survey: Subscription: To subscribe to press releases, pls use the RSS feed: https://www.enisa.europa.eu/media/press-releases/press-releases/RSS

Resilience Exercises

Good Practice Guide on National Exercises

ENISA has launched a 'Good Practice Guide on National Exercises' Exercises are an important tool to assess preparedness of a community against natural disasters, technology failures and emergency situations. ENISA, in its effort to support EU Member State authorities to enhance the resilience of critical information infrastructure, developed a good practices guide on planning and conducting national exercises.

Incident Reporting

Good Practice Guide on Incident Reporting Mechanisms

ENISA has launched a Good Practice Guide on Incident Reporting Mechanisms. Incident reporting plays a pivotal role in enhancing the resilience of public communications networks. The European Commission already highlighted the importance of incident reporting in a number of important policy documents. Addressing these needs ENISA performed an extensive stock taking of Member States activities with the aim to identify and analyse existing practices for incident reporting procedures.  

New EQR launched

The latest edition of the ENISA Quarterly Review, Q4/09 is online.

The latest edition of EQR-The ENISA Quarterly Review, 4th Quarter 2009, is available online. This edition covers the thematic areas of Resilience Measurement, Preparedness Exercises, Incident Reporting, Awareness Raising, Security Status in Third Countries, eSignatures, ISMS.

Work Programme 2010

Work Programme 2010 presented

ENISA has presented its Work Programme for 2010, as adopted by its Management Board. The Work Programme is focused on the Agency’s multiannual thematic programmes, activities and priorities. It also outlines horizontal activities, e.g. strategy, communications and outreach, managing external relations and stakeholders, administration, etc. set out for the coming years. In brief: the multiannual thematic programmes are organised under threemain headings: • 1. Improving resilience in European e-Communication networks • 2. Developing and maintaining co-operation models • 3. Identifying emerging risks for creating trust and confidence There are also two other headings, so called Preparatory Actions: - Identity, accountability and trust in the future Internet- Identifying drivers and frameworks for EU sectoral NIS Cooperation For further details on the work programme packages under each heading, as well as the horizontal activities, pls read the full Work Programme 2010. (updated, designed version announced in April 2010)

New CERTs material

New CERTs material launched: Field report from the two CSIRT exercise pilots, First draft definition of "Baseline capabilities for national / governmental CERTs", and 3 Live DVD images for the CSIRT exercises

ENISA has launched new Computer Emergency Response Teams (CERT or CSIRT) material: a report on the CSIRT exercise pilots, a draft baseline capabilities definition for national / governmental CERTs, and 3 DVD images to support the exercise material. Field report from the two CSIRT exercise pilots This is a 70 pages document from two CSIRT exercise pilots carried out this year. The pilot itself was aimed at putting our material to a test. The document is a hands-on report on logistics, preparation and experiences during the event. As a result, additional exercises were already held on request in e.g. Hong Kong. http://www.enisa.europa.eu/act/cert/support/exercise First draft definition of "Baseline capabilities for national / governmental CERTs" This draft document defines baseline capabilities for CERTs with national responsibility in the areas of service provision, mandate, cooperation and operation. The project was triggered by the European Commission in their CIIP communication and is derived from input we received from 80+ CERT teams in Europe. The document is a snapshot of an ongoing activity to enhance cross-border cooperation of national/governmental CERTs, that will be continued in 2010. http://www.enisa.europa.eu/act/cert/support/baseline-capabilities 3 Live DVD images for the CSIRT exercises 3 DVD images for teachers and students, to enable an easy application of our exercise material. The material is not only useful for CERTs, but can also be applied in any kind of training for security professionals. http://www.enisa.europa.eu/act/cert/support/exercise

Call 4 papers - SecureCloud2010

Call for papers, 'SecureCloud2010', 16-17 March, 2010

Call for papers- the first ever international cloud computing security event (i.e. to focus only on state-of-the-art security practices)  'SecureCloud2010' will focus on security, privacy and trust within cloud computing services from technical, legal, (assurance) and governance perspectives. The call (abstracts) are due by 15 Jan 2010. The SecureCloud 2010 conference is organised by ENISA and the Cloud Security Alliance (CSA) in the collaboration of ISACA. It takes place in Barcelona, on 16-17 March, during the Spanish EU Presidency.   

ED visits BSI

The Executive Director of ENISA made a key note speech at the official inauguration ceremony of the new BSI President Mr Michael Hange in Bonn, Germany, taking place in the former German Bundestag.

At BSI, (Bundesamt für Sicherheit in der Informationstechnik, i.e. the German Federal Office for Information Security,  Dr Helmbrecht stated in his speech  [in German only] that: ‘The expectations on the national bodies and ENISA are high. To be successful, we in particular need to work closely with the national administrations and industry.” He also underlined, that ‘in the area of CIIP, and the build up of a national, governmental CERTs in all 27 Member States, this must be supported commonly by ENISA, BSI and ANSSI.’ 400 participants attended the event, including many top level security profiles whom are also part of the ENISA Management Board members. These included the new BSI President Mr Hange and the French Director General of ANSSI, (Agence Nationale de la sécurité des systèms d'information) Mr Patrick Pallioux whom also made a keynote speech. Also attending from the ENISA Management Board were Dr Rannenberg and the Austrian CIO, and the Chair of the ENISA Management Board, Dr Reinhard Posch. See link to BSI PR [in German only]. Whilst in Germany, the ED also made a presentation on wireless networks at the "Universität der Bundeswehr", among other engagements, e.g. with media. ENISA Executive Director Dr Helmbrecht, BSI President Mr Hange, ANSSI DG Mr Pallioux, in the former German Bundestag. Image credit to: Luckhardt / <kes>  

Awareness Raising Award

The Awareness Raising team of ENISA got the runner up award for the category "Security Education Programme" in the"Real IT Awards 2009"

British Airways' entry, which included ENISA's posters and videos , was entitled 'Information Security Awareness Workshop'. This category included any organisation raising awareness on correct security policies and procedures associated with  the work environment. Dealing successfully with this problem is a major challenge, as organisations look for new and better ways to solve this ever present  problem . For more on ENISA's Awareness Raising activities click here More information on the awards may be found at: www.corporate-it-forum.com.

ED speech at the European Security Round Table in Brussels

Find the speech ENISA presented during the ESRT working group meeting on November 27th, in Brussels.

The Executive Director of ENISA attended the European Security Round Table Working Group ESRT in Brussels, 27th November 2009.His speech was entitled "Privacy Respecting Electronic Identity Management and Forensics". Click here to read the full text  

Position Paper: security risks, online banking and eID cards

ENISA launches new Position Paper on security risks in online banking through European eID cards

      The EU’s ‘cyber security’ Agency, ENISA (the European Network and Information Security Agency) today presents its new Position Paper. The paper is focusing on authentication risks with European eID Cards. It analyses 7 vulnerabilities, identifies 15 threats and gives security recommendations. Major European eID interoperability projects, such as STORK and its successor ELSA are aiming at a European-wide take-up of new technologies. In this context, ENISA takes an independent look at the security risks related to online banking authentication by comparing smart eID cards with other authentication means in its latest Position Paper. Online banking in one of the most widely-used electronic services by European consumers. It is a strategic service for financial institutions and users. With 24 hour service availability, it is extremely convenient. It is often without any extra costs; or even at reduced costs compared to traditional banking processes. However, online banking fraud is on the rise. Thus, security is a major concern both for online banking, e.g. tax declarations. The report also includes a case study on privacy issues when authenticating with smart cards to online social networks. The Agency report explains that because more and more internet applications require authentication, more standardized approaches to user identification and authentication are needed. In Europe, several states have already rolled out electronic ID cards. The first steps when we use internet services are usually to identify ourselves by our names and then authenticate that it is us. The security levels for these steps can vary from a simple combination of username, password, through a secret PIN, to credentials generated by some external device or a smart card using cryptography. Smart cards are increasingly being used for authentication purposes. Many European identity cards contain a smart-card chip, with functionalities for online authentication. The ENISA Position Paper defines a comprehensive list of requirements for national ID cards to ensure that they become as flexible and as multi-purpose as possible. The Executive Director of ENISA Dr Udo Helmbrecht concludes: "Electronic identity cards offer secure, reliable electronic authentication to Internet services, but banks and governments must cooperate better to be able to use national eID cards for banking purposes." Download the full report. For interviews: Ulf Bergstrom, Press & Communications Officer, ENISA, press@enisa.europa.eu, Mobile: + 30 6948 460143   Subscription: To subscribe to press releases, pls use the RSS feed: https://www.enisa.europa.eu/media/press-releases/press-releases/RSS

Quantum Key Distribution 'Briefing' paper

ENISA 'Briefing’ paper on Quantum Key Distribution.

An ENISA 'Briefing’ paper on Quantum Key Distribution; possibilities, limitations and issues in very high confidentiality assurance applications , e.g. for governments and in national security contexts has been published. ENISA 'Briefings' are short descriptions of emerging security issue. They are aimed at policy and decision makers. They give a brief introduction to the topic, areas of debate and propose a reasoned opinion on controversial points.  'Briefings' are developed within the ENISA Emerging and Future Risks program, and serves as a compass for the future.

ENISA clears the fog on cloud computing security

The EU’s ‘cyber security’ agency, ENISA launches a comprehensive, new report on “Cloud Computing: Benefits, risks and recommendations for information security”.

     How can businesses and governments get the obvious benefits of cloud computing without putting their organisation at risk? The EU’s ‘cyber security’ agency, ENISA (the European Network and Information Security Agency) answers this question in a comprehensive, new report on “Cloud Computing: Benefits, risks and recommendations for information security”. It covers the technical, policy and legal implications and most importantly, makes concrete recommendations for how to address the risks and maximise the benefits for users. ENISA’s new report is the first to take an independent, in-depth look at all the security and privacy issues of moving into the cloud, outlining some of the information security benefits of cloud computing, as well as 35 key security risks. ENISA and their expert group started with a survey asking businesses their main concerns in moving into the cloud. “The picture we got back from the survey was clear:” says Giles Hogben, an ENISA expert and editor of the report - “the business case for cloud computing is obvious – it’s computing on tap, available instantly, commitment-free and on-demand. But the number one issue holding many people back is security – how can I know if it’s safe to trust the cloud provider with my data and in some cases my entire business infrastructure?” The report answers this question with a detailed check-list of criteria which anyone can use to identify whether a cloud provider is as security-conscious as they could be. “This is the most important result of our report: our check-list isn’t just pulled from thin-air,” says Daniele Catteddu, the ENISA report co-editor – “we based it on a careful risk analysis of a number of cloud computing scenarios, focussing on the needs of business customers. The most important risks addressed by the check-list include lock-in, failures in mechanisms separating customers’ data and applications, and legal risks such as the failure to comply with data protection legislation.” With the security check-list, customers now know the right questions to ask and providers can answer those questions just once instead of being overloaded with requests for assurance about their security practices. Cloud computing also entails great economic interests, e.g. the IDC forecasts a growth of European cloud services from €971m in 2008 to €6,005m in 2013. But as the report points out, cloud computing is also a security enabler. The Executive Director of ENISA, Dr Udo Helmbrecht, underlines: “The scale and flexibility of cloud computing gives the providers a security edge. For example, providers can instantly call on extra defensive resources like filtering and re-routing. They can also roll out new security patches more efficiently and keep more comprehensive evidence for diagnostics.” Download the full report. For interview arrangements: Ulf Bergstrom, Press & Communications Officer, ENISA, press@enisa.europa.eu, Mobile: + 30 6948 460143 Additional material: SME Survey on Cloud Computing Cloud Computing Information Assurance Framework  FAQs on Cloud Computing NEW: See the Cloud computing video Subscription: To subscribe to press releases, pls use the RSS feed: https://www.enisa.europa.eu/media/press-releases/press-releases/RSS

Fourth Internet Governance Forum in Egypt

Dr. Steve Purser represented ENISA in two panel discussions at the Internet Governance Forum in Egypt.

In the first panel, entitled ‘Balancing the need for security and the concerns for civil liberties’ he stressed the point that this issue will not be solved by regulation alone and that it is important to use a combination of techniques to achieve a sensible balance between security and civil liberties. In his concluding remarks, he noted that the panel had identified three types of activity that could sensibly contribute to achieving such a balance: Helping citizens to develop simple risk management techniques for the  electronic world (electronic common sense).Appropriate use of technology.Regulation. He also stressed the fact that context is extremely important when designing security solutions and that rules driven or check-list approaches are no substitute for clear thinking. In the second panel on the subject of net neutrality, Dr. Purser explained why security should be seen as a necessary condition for neutrality and went on to explain what ENISA is doing to support the Member States and the Commission in the area of Internet resilience. He noted that a key success factor in securing the Internet of the future will be the extent to which different communities are able to work together to achieve common goals and cited the European Public Private Partnership for Resilience (EP3R) as a practical example of efforts to form such a partnerships.

ENISA targets Micro Enterprises

ENISA targets Micro Enterprises - the Real Giants of EU Economy

On 12 November 2009, Hessen Agentur and the State of Hessen invited stakeholders to spend an evening dedicated to IT security for micro enterprises at the Brussels representation of the State of Hessen. Secretary of State Nicola Beer in her welcome address to more than 80 participants thanked ENISA for targeting micro enterprises, “the real giants of European economy”, and for entrusting Hessen Agentur with the development of the online tool underlining the importance of Hessen as ICT region. ENISA’s Dr. Ronald De Bruin in setting the scene for ENISA’s engagement outlined threats and vulnerabilities, and referred to the specific needs of micro enterprises in facing those challenges on a day-to-day basis. Subsequent to the political openings Christian Schülke introduced the subject matter of motivating micro enterprises. Hessen Agentur project manager Olaf Jüptner continued by presenting the newly developed online tool. Based on a methodology developed by ENISA and as part of ENISA Work Programme 2009, Hessen Agentur has realised a toolkit enabling multipliers such as sectoral associations and/or regional authorities to easily address their micro enterprise constituency with their own, branded security awareness campaign. Presentations were followed by a reception providing further opportunity of networking among key multiplier organisations and political decision-makers. For further information please consult the following websites:• www.kmu-sicherheit.eu (DE/ EN)• www.sme-security.eu (EN) Photo:Secretary of State Nicola Beer (left) and ENISA’s Dr. Ronald De Bruin (centre) with project team at the Brussels Representation of the State of Hessen.  

ENISA teams up with Member States on pan-European CIIP exercise

ENISA teams up with Member States on pan-European CIIP exercise

Dr. Steve Purser of ENISA responded to the call for supporting the Member States in pan-European CIIP exercises and stressed the need to move from a conceptual framework to concrete action. Whilst the Member States are the drivers of such exercises, ENISA is ready to take a proactive role in supporting their initiatives. This appeal to the Member States was made during the 2nd meeting of the European Forum for Member States (EFMS), Brussels 12 November 2009. The EFMS responds to the European Commission policy initiative on Critical Information Infrastructure Protection (CIIP) – COM(2009)149 of 30 March 2009. Supporting the Commission’s CIIP action plan is one of the key priorities of the Agency. Member States that participated in this meeting called upon ENISA to facilitate the forum by collecting and disseminating national good practices. ENISA strongly favours this idea and will set up a repository for good practice. The Agency currently works on a good practice guide for national exercises. Click here and here for ENISA presentations.

Nomination speech by ED available in French & English

Nomination speech of 16 April 2009 for Executive Director by Dr Helmbrecht before the EP-ITRE committee now available in French & English.

The nomination speech before the European Parliament ITRE Committee on 16 April 2009, of the [then, coming to be] ENISA Executive Director Dr. Helmbrecht is available in English and French, (in translation from the orginal German version). The translations are available along with all other background material and translated documents, CV, PR, etc, in the press release page re: the new, ENISA Executive Director.  

ED speech at the EU Resilience conference

ED Dr Helmbrecht's speech at the Resilience conference in Stockholm, 4-5 Nov. 2009.

ENISA Executive Director Dr Udo Helmbrecht's speech at the Swedish EU Presidency Resilience conference in Stockholm, 4-5 Nov. 2009; meeting with the PTS [Swedish Regulatory Agency] Director General Marianne Treschow. In the speech Dr Helmbrecht underlined the need for "every Member State to have a at least one governmental CERT"  i.e. a Computer Emergency Response Team. Moreover, the Executive Director underlined that "[..] we do not have an operational pan European Information Sharing and Alert System (EISAS). Without this we are really blind just waiting for the next incident to happen. " and that it would need to be installed.

Focus article: Network Information Security Exchanges

Interview on ”Good Practice Guide Network Security Information Exchanges"

Interview with Dr Evangelos Ouzounis and Dr Konstantinos Moulinos  on ”Good Practice Guide Network Security Information Exchanges"

PSG Call: new deadline - 30 Nov.

The deadline for applications for membership of the Permanent Stakeholders Group (PSG) has been extended till 30 November.

The deadline for applications for membership of the Permanent Stakeholders Group (PSG) has been extended till 30 November. Applicants can find information concerning the documentation they need to apply for membership at:https://www.enisa.europa.eu/media/press-releases/time-to-advise-europe-on-security  

ENISA hosting Clearinghouse for Incident Handling Tools

ENISA is hosting and maintaining the CERT [Computer Emergency Response Teams] community's project of a Clearinghouse for Incident Handling Tools.

ENISA hosts project from CERT community   ENISA is now hosting and maintaining the Clearinghouse for Incident Handling Tools, a project by the European CERT community TF-CSIRT to support freshly built Computer Emergency Response Teams (CERT)s.  The website lists tools for various tasks that are also used by well established CERTs. ENISA will host this project until a new maintainer from within the community is found. Find the project website here:http://www.enisa.europa.eu/act/cert/support/chiht 

New ED meets Reding

The new Executive Director of ENISA Dr Helmbrecht has met Commissioner Reding on 23/10/2009.

The new Executive Director of ENISA, Dr Helmbrecht, has met Commissioner Reding, at the joint EDPS-ENISA seminar in Brussels on Friday, 23/10/2009. Please find the speech of Dr Helmbrecht attached. See more 'News in pictures:'

FAQ on Network Security Information Sharing Guide online

FAQ to the report Good Practice Guide Network Security Information Exchanges

FAQ on NSIE

New Executive Director at ENISA: Helmbrecht at the helm

The EU’s ‘cyber security’ Agency ENISA [i.e. the European Network and Information Security Agency] has a new Executive Director as of 16th October; Dr Udo Helmbrecht.

       The EU’s ‘cyber security’ Agency ENISA [i.e. the European Network and Information Security Agency] has a new Executive Director as of 16th October; Dr Udo Helmbrecht. Dr Helmbrecht is the former President of the German IT Security Agency BSI, [the Federal Office for Information Security]. Dr Helmbrecht clarifies his visions for the Agency as its new Executive Director: “I am very pleased, privileged and humbled to have gained the Management Board’s trust to become the Executive Director of ENISA. I proudly and readily assume this position, working for Europe. Before I worked for the improvement of the IT security in Germany; now I want to contribute to a secure information Society in Europe. It will be a bit of “changing hats” for me. As such, this is a tremendously stimulating step in my career. Yet, I deem my experience as head of a national security authority should be of added value for Europe and ENISA. I will strive to help the Agency to work more closely, hand-in-hand, with the European Institutions, trustfully and actively together with the Member States and to promote cooperation between governments, businesses and NGOs to the benefit of citizens in the European Union. That way, we should increase the appreciation of ENISA as a brand for trust and security. I will work towards a permanent mandate for ENISA-beyond the present 2012 ‘sun-set’ clause. The clear and permanent mandate is necessary to manage the increasing, fundamental role of security for economic and financial matters; for business and consumers alike. Ultimately, the economy of Europe is at stake if we do not manage security matters properly and adequately. At the same time, we should promote the benefits of security to the citizens, so they gain trust in the advantages of information and communication technology to safely enjoy life in cyber space. I am firmly convinced that Europe needs more cooperation and dialogue with all security stakeholders. ENISA’s role in this is clear: Europe and its institutions need an independent body to give expert advice in security matters. The Agency must become a stronger and even more respected actor, working as a political advisory body and ‘pace-setter' for the European Commission and the European Parliament. As such, the Agency’s advice should have a lasting impact on the laws and regulation of the Commission and the Member States. There are many daunting security challenges ahead of us. But I am certain that with the support of the skilled ENISA staff and the Member States we will do it. We will make the digital, online Europe a safer place. Working together; ‘the whole is more than the sum of its parts'; which is the essence of Europe.” Dr Helmbrecht concludes. Dr Udo Helmbrecht was born in 1955, Castrop-Rauxel, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. He has more than 30 years of professional, management experience in the IT sector. His experience has been gained in various sectors of society. This includes e.g. energy industry, insurance company engineering, aviation, defence, and space industry, before becoming President of BSI in 2003. Now, in 2009, new European security challenges await at ENISA. At the same time, Michael Hange in ENISA’s Management Board and former Deputy Head at BSI becomes the new President of BSI, replacing Dr Helmbrecht. Background documents:  Curriculum Vitae of Dr Helmbrecht (EN), CV in French, CV in German.Dr Helmbrecht’s presentation to the Management Board, 3 April 2009, PPT. Bullet points/text to MB-slidesDr Helmbrecht’s speech to the ITRE committee on 16 April, 2009 (in German-original version). Translations; in English. In French. For interviews arrangements with Dr Helmbrecht please contact:Ulf Bergstrom, Press & Communications Officer, ENISA, press@enisa.europa.eu, Mobile: + 30 6948 460143 Subscription: To subscribe to press releases, pls use the RSS feed: https://www.enisa.europa.eu/media/press-releases/press-releases/RSS

New CERT video clip online

ENISA launches a video clip on ENISA Computer Emergency Response Team [CERT] exercise material

ENISA launches a video clip on ENISA Computer Emergency Response Team [CERT] exercise material and presents two pilot CERT-exercises: one held in Moldova, 'Fighting cyber attacks', and the other: 'Investigating infected computers', taking place in Japan.

ENISA- 1st EU Agency with IPv6

The EU Agency ENISA [i.e. the European Network and Information Security Agency] now delivers its web site content over the new Internet protocol IPv6.

        The EU Agency ENISA [i.e. the European Network and Information Security Agency] now delivers its web site content over the new Internet protocol IPv6. With this action, ENISA is the first EU Agency to implement the European Commission's IPv6 Action Plan. All computer and electronic devices that connect to the web and other online services uses Internet Protocol Addresses. The current Internet Protocol, IPv4, provides a limited number of such addresses. According to estimates these addresses will all be exhausted by 2011. The new Internet Protocol, IPv6, allows every citizen and organization to have as many Internet Addresses as they need to connect every conceivable device to the Internet: mobile phones, car navigation systems, home appliances, industrial equipment, etc. Besides the obvious increase in address space, IPv6 offers many technological advantages that have significant economic impact. IPv6 is expected to be a key driver for many new mobile and wireless applications and services and an essential technology for implementing ambient intelligence. During 2008 ENISA carried out an assessment of Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6), along with two other key technologies, regarding its potential to provide increased network resilience. This analysis was carried out from two perspectives. The first consisted of analysing the characteristics of the selected technologies and their public communication network's resilience enhancing features. In parallel, the effectiveness, problems and gaps that potentially could compromise the availability of networks and services, was assessed through interviews with twelve network operators in EU Member States. The Agency commented: “By delivering its web content over the new Internet Protocol, ENISA actively supports Europe’s objective to widely implement IPv6 by 2010. At the same time, ENISA is using its own recommendations; to take advantage of the technological and resiliency features of the new protocol.” Bosco Fernandes of Nokia Siemens Networks, former Coordinator of the EC Steering Committee Task Force on IPv6 and member of the ITU Executive Board, welcomed this initiative: "ENISA has made a strategic move towards IPv6 deployment. The IPv6 community most welcomes this initiative ENISA has taken. The Industry at large is now finally appreciating the need to deploy IPv6 in most sectors. It is a high priority topic in the telecom industry as well as for 3GPP, ITU and the UMTS Forum." To offer its web content over IPv6, ENISA deployed native IPv6 connectivity at its service providing network and enabled Domain Name System (DNS) resolution and Hyper Text Transfer Protocol/Secure (HTTP/S) service delivery over IPv6. Background: European Commission communication on IPv6, of 27 May 2008.ENISA’s Multiannual Thematic Program has the objective to improve the resilience of public eCommunications in Europe. For further details: Demosthenes Ikonomou, ENISA, http://www.enisa.europa.eu/sta/ Security Tools and Architectures

Greek Authorities actively support ENISA’s expansion

A significant logistic facility has been offered to the Agency by the Hellenic Authorities: a bureau de passage in Athens.

The Ministry of Transport and Communications has generously offered ENISA an office in Athens situated at a ten minute drive from the International Airport. The drop-in office will enable ENISA’s members to organise meetings thus enhancing relationship with its Stakeholders. The venue has spacious meeting rooms, offices and a  reception. On 8th October the Agency Management Team meeting was held in the Athens office.  This initiative by the Greek Authorities, shows commitment towards the successful functioning of the Agency, by providing it with facilities that allow it to perform in the best possible way. Photo of the Management Meeting please click here Photo of the Board Room click here  

Guide to mitigate vulnerabilities, threats & cyber attacks

ENISA launches Guide on sharing information to mitigate network security vulnerabilities, threats and cyber attacks

      EU Agency ENISA presents the first pan European Good Practice Guide on Network Security Information Exchange (NSIE). The main aim of this guide is to assist Member States and private stakeholders in setting up and running NSIEs at national level. The guide could also pave the way for the creation of the first pan European NSIE for critical communication networks and services. ENISA’s stock taking and analysis on this topic confirmed the importance and strategic value of information sharing. Member States are strongly interested in better understanding and deploying information sharing exchanges. They explicitly requested ENISA to develop a good practice guide based on observed practices of existing NSIEs. The content of the guide represents the aggregation of good practices from a number of countries having significant expertise in the area and individual discussions with experts. NSIE is a form of strategic partnership among key public and private stakeholders. The drivers for this information exchange are the benefits of members working together on common problems and gaining access to information which is not available from any other source. NSIE is an excellent vehicle to: better understand a changing security and resilience environment learn in a holistic manner about intrusions, vulnerabilities and threats develop recommendations for mitigating vulnerabilities, threats, & cyber attacks jointly develop methods to continuously assess existing measures provide unique insights and strategic views to policy makers and strategists The Agency commented: “Information sharing is a crucial element in EU efforts to enhance the resilience and security of critical communication networks and services. Hopefully this guide will pave the way for an accelerated deployment of national NSIEs and consequently of pan European one” This good practice guide is part of ENISA’s Resilience Program. It contributes to European Commission (or EU) strategy of Critical Information Infrastructure Protection (CIIP). This strategy calls for wide deployment of national NSIEs and the creation of a pan European Public Private Partnership for Resilience. The full report: NSIE report