NATO launches multinational cyber security project

A new project to improve the sharing of information on cyber defence has been launched by five NATO members.  

Launched on 14 March in Brussels by Canada, the lead for the project, as well as Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway and Romania, the Multinational Cyber Defence Capability Development Project (MN CD2)  is supported by the NATO Communications and Information Agency (NCIA) under the alliance’s ‘smart defence’ initiative. 

The MN CD2 will allow nations to cooperate in developing improved means of sharing information, shared awareness of threats and attacks, and the development of advanced cyber defence sensors. 

The project endeavours to be an important step in the NCIA’s support for developing national cyber defence to improve NATO’s overall resilience, a statement explained. 

This is expected to improve cyber defence in a more economical way than developing them individually, as well as encouraging diversity across NATO’s cyber security; the nations can focus their attentions on areas of choice that feed into the alliance to benefit on a multinational level. 

‘There are several benefits from a multinational approach to developing cyber defence capabilities: potential for cost-savings through joint research [and] development; joint procurement for economies of scale; and a better end result thanks to more diversive exposure,’ Koen Gijsbers, NCIA GM, explained in the statement. ‘A capability developed in this way is “born interoperable”, potentially saving significant investments in the long-term.’

‘Cyber is the area where the defence is vastly more complex and costly than the offence,’ VADM Robert Davidson, military representative of Canada to NATO, added in the statement. ‘This project is a game changer through which we can help each other to help ourselves.’

Other member nations have the option to join the MN CD2 in accordance with the project’s MoU, NATO literature said.