
What NIS2 Cybersecurity Means for Your Business
For every business anno 2025, staying ahead in an ever-changing digital landscape is critical for success. The European Union’s NIS2 Directive, effective from October 2024, introduces new requirements for cybersecurity and operational resilience that directly impact your business.
What Is the NIS2 Directive?
The Network and Information Security (NIS2) Directive is a regulatory framework of the EU that aims to strengthen cybersecurity requirements across important sectors and to harmonize security requirements. The NIS2 Directive builds on its predecessor (NIS) and establishes stricter rules for protecting critical infrastructure, networks, and information systems. Its scope now includes more sectors and medium-sized enterprises, meaning your organization might be affected even if it wasn’t under the original NIS framework.
Which Organisations Must Comply with NIS2?
NIS2 does not apply to all organisations, but only to those that are active in certain sectors that are explicitly listed in NIS2. There are two types of sectors to which NIS2 applies.
- Essential: organisations that are considered vital to societal and economic functions. Disruption of these organisations could have a significant impact on society. Examples includes energy, transport, banking, healthcare, and digital infrastructure.
- Important: disruption of these organisations could have serious impact on society, but is not as severe as a disruption in essential entities. Examples include food production, manufacturing, and cloud providers.
Note that even though an organisation in itself is not considered as essential or important, it may still have to comply with NIS2 based on its supply chain. For example, a company that provides technology for a healthcare provider will be expected to comply by the healthcare provider.
The Opportunities
- Strengthen customer and stakeholder trust
By complying with NIS2, you demonstrate a robust commitment to cybersecurity. This can position your company as a trusted partner, boosting customer confidence and enhancing your brand reputation. - Competitive advantage
Early compliance with NIS2 sets you apart from competitors who may lag behind. Demonstrating strong cybersecurity practices can help you win contracts, particularly in industries prioritizing secure partnerships. Organisations in regulated industries such as pharma generally prioritise partners that can demonstrate accountability with regulations. - Enhanced resilience and security
Aligning with NIS2 requirements improves your ability to withstand cyber threats and recover from incidents, reducing downtime and protecting your bottom line.
The Risks
- Non-compliance penalties
Failing to comply with NIS2 could result in hefty fines, reputational damage, or even operational restrictions. The directive imposes a penalty framework of up to 2% of global turnover or €10 million, whichever is higher. - Increased regulatory scrutiny
Regulators and inspection agencies will closely monitor compliance, requiring businesses to submit detailed reports on risk management and incident response measures. Are you prepared for this level of accountability? - Resource Strain
Compliance requires investment in cybersecurity infrastructure, staff training, and ongoing risk assessments. Without proper planning, this could strain your resources.
How To Prepare for NIS2?
Don’t wait until it’s too late to address the requirements of NIS2. To prepare for NIS2 compliance, we recommend the following approach:
- Assess which obligations apply to your organisation. This is based on the sector(s) it operates in, obligations and expectations from suppliers and clients, and the size of the company.
- Assess your risks. Execute a cybersecurity scan to gain insight into your current technical and organisational measures, and what you need to do to improve cybersecurity resilience.
- Create an implementation plan for required security measures. This should be based on the results of the cybersecurity scan, the risk and criticality of data and IT systems, and available resources. There may also be an overlap with measures related to other regulations, such as the EU GDPR.
- Implement security measures, following the implementation plan. Depending on estimated risk and impact, you can consider a wide range of measures – including technical measures, organisational measures, training and awareness, physical security measures, and others. Consider the company culture as well.
- Monitor compliance and adapt when necessary. For example, logs should be reviewed regularly and incident management procedures should be in place and tested periodically. We also recommend to execute a cybersecurity scan (step 2) on a regular basis to ensure ongoing compliance.
Take Action Today
Cybersecurity is not just a matter for the department of IT or Information Security. Because security incidents pose a real and serious threat to the entire business, senior management should be involved from the start.
Operational activities may be delegated to IT, InfoSec, or Legal/Compliance. However, all functions should be involved to get a full view of the risks and ensure feasible mitigation measures.
Because NIS2 compliance and cybersecurity risks require specific expertise, it is most effective to work with cybersecurity consultants who understand NIS2 and can guide you through the compliance process
Vivenics offers a cybersecurity scan that is easy to complete and that provides specific recommendations. Contact us to learn more about this.
Secure Your Future
NIS2 is not just a regulatory hurdle; it’s an opportunity to future-proof your business. By taking proactive steps now, you can safeguard your operations, build trust with your stakeholders, and position your company for long-term success in an increasingly digital world.
Are you ready to secure your systems and turn NIS2 compliance into a competitive advantage? Let’s start the conversation today. You can reach us on +31 (0)88 8483 100 or via info@vivenics.com.