In order to stay on top of a constantly-evolving cybersecurity landscape, the European Union has made the Network and Information Security (NIS2) Directive the cornerstone of their efforts to guarantee a uniform level of cybersecurity across all member states.
Introduced in 2020 and coming into effect on January 16, 2023, the NIS2 Directive is a continuation and expansion of NIS, the previous EU cybersecurity directive. NIS2 strengthens NIS, expands its scope, and introduces new requirements to help protect vital infrastructure, critical services, and key sectors from cyber threats.
In this post, we’ll go into detail about 8 key NIS2 requirements and see how Zabbix can help organizations meet each one.
NIS2 Requirement 1: Analyze risks and provide information system security.
Zabbix is set up to detect anomalies, suspicious activities, resource overload, downtime, and many other “red flags.” It can also monitor bandwidth usage and network interface metrics, and track the integrity of important files, including password and configuration files.
Monitoring critical services that prevent potential attacks (such as firewalls) is simple and intuitive, as is checking for open ports and insecure webpages. Not only that, Zabbix can track sensors in data centers to detect any physical security breaches and set up a customized alerting workflow for specific events.
NIS2 Requirement 2: Have procedures in place to handle security incidents as they arise.
Zabbix can provide real-time monitoring and alert users to potential incidents, keep a comprehensive log history for root cause analysis, and support multiple notification channels and scenarios for incident reporting. It can also share real-time incident data with external systems (via integrations or APIs) and display custom dashboards and reports about ongoing incidents.
NIS2 Requirement 3: Have backup management, disaster recovery, and crisis management plans in place to provide business continuity.
Zabbix supports Veeam (OOB) and Bacula data platforms, as well as many others. It can also monitor the backup execution process while tracking the storage and usage of backup servers.
NIS2 Requirement 4: Maintain supply chain security, including security-related aspects concerning the relationships between each entity and its direct suppliers or service providers.
Zabbix users can easily monitor third-party services and dependencies (such as APIs or libraries) for availability and performance, while being alerted to any potential vulnerabilities or disruptions in supply chain services. What’s more, Zabbix can also handle service monitoring and SLA reporting, keeping users updated around the clock on progress against predefined SLAs.
NIS2 Requirement 5: Provide security in network and information systems acquisition, development, and maintenance – including vulnerability handling and disclosure.
With Zabbix, a user can easily track software versions and check for outdated components, thanks to Zabbix’s ability to integrate with external tools for checking vulnerabilities.
NIS2 Requirement 6: Have policies and procedures in place regarding the use of cryptography and encryption.
Zabbix makes it simple for organizations of any size to comprehensively monitor encryption certificates for expiration.
NIS2 Requirement 7: Maintain HR security by providing accessible control and asset management policies.
Zabbix allows organizations to quickly and easily monitor user actions via log files.
NIS2 Requirement 8: Implement multi-factor authentication (MFA) or continuous authentication solutions, secured voice, video and text communications, and secured emergency communication systems.
Zabbix is set up to monitor the performance and uptime of any identity provider (IdP), using APIs provided by the IdPs themselves to query MFA policies and user login events. Zabbix can also monitor logs for MFA-related events while providing custom dashboards and reports on MFA usage.
In conclusion:
NIS2 is reshaping the cybersecurity landscape, and Zabbix has what it takes to equip organizations with the knowledge they need to thrive in this new regulatory environment. Trusting your monitoring to Zabbix can enhance your overall cybersecurity posture and supporting a comprehensive NIS2 implementation strategy.
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