A cybersecurity training session for SMEs in the productive sector of the Lazio area and the public administration, with the aim of increasing the companies' understanding and knowledge of potential cyber threats and their possible cascading effects on the whole economy. With these objectives in mind, after the meetings in Catania, Bari and Naples, the fourth of the meetings organised in the main Italian cities by TIM Enterprise – the Group’s business unit dedicated to companies, public administrations and large customers – and the local representatives of Confindustria, was held today in Rome at the office of the Centro Studi Americani.
The focus is on the new European Directive on Cybersecurity (NIS 2), which even small and medium-sized Italian companies will have to comply with by next year.
The increasing digitalisation of companies and public administrations exposes the entire supply chain to risks stemming from attacks on the least cyber-secure organisations. According to data collected by the TIM Research Centre, 61% of SMEs believe they could be the target of cyber attacks, but only 32% believe they are ready to manage them. More generally, in 2023, subjects targeted by cyber attacks grew by 187%. In particular, according to TIM’s cybersecurity systems, high-intensity Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks – where criminals overload websites, servers or network resources with huge amounts of malicious traffic – accounted for around 30% of total attacks, double the previous year. Italy is also the third-most affected country in Europe (and sixth in the world) in terms of the number of DDoS attacks, and the most affected EU country in terms of ransomware attacks, characterised by ransom demands.
In this situation, the provisions of the new NIS 2 Directive, which aims to raise the general level of cybersecurity in Europe, will also be applied to SMEs if they are suppliers to companies operating in certain sectors defined as critical, such as manufacturing, food, waste management, energy, transport, water and healthcare, as well as banking, finance and digital services. The measures range from risk analysis to incident management, from business continuity to supply chain and IT security. Further attention is required in relation to cyber strategies, employee training, encryption and two-factor authentication tools. Failure to comply with NIS 2 will result in significant penalties.
The event was attended by Giuseppe Biazzo, President of Unindustria, Bruno Frattasi, Director General, ACN; Eugenio Santagata, Chief Public Affairs, Security & International Business Officer, TIM – Chairman and CEO of Telsy; Roberto Sgalla, Director of the Centro Studi Americani; Lorenzo Benigni, Vice President with responsibility for Cybersecurity at Unindustria; Roberta Angelilli, Vice President and Councillor for Economic Development, Trade, Crafts, Industry and Internationalisation, Lazio Region; Alessandro Curioni, Journalist, Educator and founder of DI.GI. Academy; Cristiano Alborè, Portfolio Development Director, Telsy, TIM Cyber and Crypto Competence Centre; Gian Luca Ricci, Cyber Operational Leader, Ethical Hacking, Telsy; Alessandro Francolini, President of Cicero DIH Lazio, Matteo Lucchetti, Operations Director, Ciber 4.0.
There were numerous first-hand accounts from key local companies: Francesca Basilico, San Raffaele, President of the Health Section at Unindustria; Massimo Scaccabarozzi, Menarini Biotech, President of the Pharmaceutical Section at Unindustria; Domitilla Benigni, Chairman of CY4GATE, Member of the Board of Directors of TIM; Maddalena Nocivelli, DAB Sistemi Integrati, President of the IT section at Unindustria Lazio; Cristiano Dionisi, SICOI, President of Small-scale Industry, Unindustria.
The meeting in Rome will be followed in the coming weeks by the date in Modena.
Rome, 16 October 2024
