The European Commission is establishing a Cybersecurity Support Centre in Europe to improve cybersecurity in the healthcare sector.
Europe will have a Cybersecurity Support Centre that aims to reduce the number of cyber attacks within the healthcare sector. Cybersecurity in the healthcare sector is vital. Hospitals and other healthcare facilities are increasingly falling victim to cyber attacks, including ransomware. This can cause patient safety to be compromised, but also leads to operational disruptions and increased costs. Because such cyber threats are often cross-border, the Europa calls for cooperation.
Cybersecurity Support Center
The Cybersecurity Support Centre is one of the key measures in the EU action plan. With it, Europe aims to reduce cyber attacks in the healthcare sector. Different services will be provided within this center, which aim to increase the cyber security of hospitals and other healthcare institutions.
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The center will gather knowledge on various threats and provide advice on how to prevent them. It will also offer guidelines, cybersecurity maturity assessments, training modules and funding support (such as vouchers) for healthcare facilities.
It is also developing a catalog of vulnerabilities in medical devices, an early warning system and supports the European Health ISAC for information sharing. In case of incidents, it provides rapid response through the EU Cybersecurity Reserve, incident response playbooks and ransomware recovery services.
European level
The Cybersecurity Support Center targets all member states in Europe. Cyber threats are often cross-border, and so the EU encourages member states to develop national action plans, share resources and set up Incident Sharing and Analysis Centers (ISACs).
The Cybersecurity Support Center will be established in the second quarter of 2025, and should be operational by the end of this year.