- In partnership with IDELUX, we are establishing a new European Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence in the Galaxia business park in Transinne, Belgium.
- The Centre, which represents an equity investment of €20 million, will provide comprehensive cybersecurity services and ongoing cyber protection to organisations from all sectors, including governments, institutions, defence and commercial.
- Its mission is to defend critical infrastructures and applications against cyber threats by developing world-class expertise in the service of the societal sovereignty of Belgium and Europe.
- Transinne’s location close to the European Space Agency’s site at Redu, Belgium, was chosen to create a critical mass of excellence in cybersecurity and a Cyber Valley in the heart of Europe.
PRESS RELEASE
Together with IDELUX, we are building a new European Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence at Transinne, Belgium. Unique in Europe, it will ensure the secure design, operation and use of IT systems and critical infrastructure by European commercial and institutional organisations. It will be the cornerstone of a unique cybersecurity ecosystem and pool of expertise in the heart of Europe to help Europe’s critical infrastructure and operations in the face of soaring cyber threats.
Positioned in the Galaxia business park, a site that is growing rapidly thanks to its focus on space and the proximity of ESA’s cyber heartland in Redu, we will apply our unique combination of expertise in space and security to develop a Centre of Excellence that provides the full range of cybersecurity services. This Centre will stimulate the convergence of institutional, academic and industrial players in the field of cybersecurity, and thus the creation of talent and expertise that is urgently needed in our digital economy. The Centre will also support emerging secure technologies such as quantum key distribution and 5G/6G communications, both for research and operational purposes.
The new €20 million Centre represents the largest private investment of its kind in Belgium dedicated to cybersecurity and will create over 100 local jobs. The 3,300m² modular building, designed by the renowned architectural firm ASSAR, will have a core and two wings, each with two floors, providing four distinct secure zones dedicated to specific sectors and activities.
The building has been carefully designed to blend in with the natural environment and to have a low environmental impact, in accordance with BREEAM Excellent certification.
This announcement of the new Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence comes as cyber threats to all sectors and sizes of organisations continue to soar, including cyberattacks directly linked to recent international armed conflicts. Global cybercrime and cyber terrorism costs are expected to increase by 15% per year, reaching US$10.5 trillion annually by 20251. The Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence will therefore offer services such as cyber protection consultancy, cyber threat awareness, testing of existing systems against cyber risks, improvement of infrastructure and application protection levels, 24-hour continuous cyber protection, rapid response to cyberattacks, post-incident investigation and cross-sector research and development.
To address the cybersecurity skills gap – estimated at over 2.7 million worldwide2 – the Centre will also provide comprehensive cybersecurity training and certification for students and professionals.
The new facility will work in collaboration with other European cybersecurity centres, such as ESA’s new Cyber Safety and Security Operations Centre (C-SOC) and the Security Cyber Centre of Excellence (SCCoE), both of which will be located a few kilometres away in Redu, Belgium.
Editors’ notes:
1. Cybersecurity Ventures; 2020; https://cybersecurityventures.com/cybercrime-damages-6-trillion-by-2021/
2. (ISC)2 Cybersecurity Workforce Study, 2021
Main image: European Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence, Transinne (architect’s impression).