The European Space Agency (ESA) has chosen Leonardo for the cyber security of EU space resources. The Italian group has signed a contract to design, develop, build, validate and operate, under the technical responsibility of the ESA security office, the new Cyber-security operations center of the Agency.
It is, explain Leonardo’s technicians, akey infrastructure for Europe, What will be operational since 2024 with the aim of protecting European space resources and related control and operations management centers from cyber threats; but also the earth – earth and earth – space connections, as well as those between the infrastructures in orbit.
Prime contractor
Leonardo, acting as prime contractor, will be leading a c industrial consortium made up of 19 companies from Italy, Belgium, France, Germany, Great Britain, Estonia, Romania. The Italian group, explains a note, relies “on the experience acquired by protecting over 5 thousand networks and 70 thousand users in 130 countries from the cyber threat and leading large international projects, such as the NATO program Computer incident response full operational capability, which guarantees the security of information and communications at approximately 75 NATO sites located in 29 countries around the world.
European space security
«Ensuring the cyber resilience of space resources – says Tommaso Profeta, managing director of Leonardo’s cyber security division (which has commercial and technical management in Genoa) – it is crucial for Europe’s economy and security, in a scenario characterized by a constantly increasing hybrid threat and by the growing importance of satellite data in accessing essential services for the life of all citizens and for the activities of companies, states and decision makers global “.
“As an Italian company dedicated to the protection of technologies for the security of strategic assets – continues Profeta – we are proud to be able to put our skills at the service of ESA for the protection of space activities and systems in terms of confidentiality, integrity and availability” .