NATO Allies conclude largest cyber defense exercise in Estonia

Europe, News December 5, 2022 , by IRIA No Comments

More than 1,000 cyber defenders and experts from 26 NATO countries and seven partner nations concluded the largest annual cyber defense exercise, Cyber Coalition 2022, in Tallinn, Estonia.

NATO’s flagship collective cyber defense exercise Cyber Coalition is led by the Allied Command Transformation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, under the governance of the Military Committee.

Cyber defenders and experts from NATO Allies and invitees from Finland, Sweden, Georgia, Ireland, Japan, Switzerland, and the European Union joined the annual cyber defense exercise from November 28 to December 2 in Estonia. Several participants from industry and academia were also present during the exercise in Tallinn, while some participated virtually.

Cyber Coalition 2022 Exercise Director, U.S. Navy Commander Charles Elliott said that “The aim of the exercise is to coordinate and collaborate together in Cyberspace, through both NATO nations and non-NATO partner nations and organizations to ensure that we all come together to make Cyberspace a safer place.”

The Exercise Director Elliott added that “The best part about this exercise […] is that it is a collaborative and cooperative environment and it is not a competition… Building on the success of this year, we will incorporate more real-world lessons learned as we go into next year.”

The Cyber Coalition exercise trained cyber defenders from across the Alliance and helped them to enhance their ability to defend NATO and national networks and operate together in cyberspace.

During the exercise, participants trained together and tackled real-life cyber challenges such as cyber-attacks on power grids, programs, critical infrastructures, and NATO and Allied assets while in operations. The Exercise is based on a challenging, realistic scenario where a powerful threat actor tries to compromise a NATO mission by conducting advanced and sophisticated cyber operations. These operations trigger the coordination and collaboration of participating NATO, Allied, and partner cyber defenders.

*^{Cyber defenders from 26 NATO countries and 7 partner nations taking part in the Cyber Coalition 22 Exercise. (Image Credit: NATO)}*

According to the NATO Allied Command Transformation statement, “Cyber Coalition 22 provides a unique platform for collaboration, experience-sharing, best practices, and experimentation. By working together, the individual participants, as well as their organizations, nations, and NATO, enhance their cyber resilience.”

The statement highlighted that the annual exercise is a perfect venue for experimentation, driving cyberspace warfare, and capability development.” It tests and validates concepts, captures requirements, and explores Emerging and Disruptive Technologies, in support of military operators and commanders.

Supreme Allied Commander Transformation of French Air and Space Force, General Philippe Lavigne said “Malign actors seek to degrade our critical infrastructure, interfere with our government services, extract intelligence, steal intellectual property and impede our military activities. Allies are committed to protecting their critical infrastructure, building resilience, and bolstering their cyber defenses.”

According to General Lavigne, the allies will continue to raise their guard against malicious cyber activities in the future, as well as provide assistance to each other to “deter, defend against and counter the full spectrum of cyber threats, including by considering possible collective responses.”