Cybersecurity: Building bridges to Europe
Cybersecurity: Building bridges to Europe
Internationally renowned for its technological excellence, the Israeli cybersecurity ecosystem has developed solutions that could find an interesting market in Europe
Cybersecurity has become a daily concern for all types of organisations. Cyberattacks are constantly increasing and target any kind of device, network and system that has vulnerabilities. At the same time, the global demand for specialists in this field considerably exceeds the size of the talent pool available.
“This is in particular an issue for small and medium-sized businesses, which are facing the double challenge of a lack of staff with the right skills and limited resources to invest in expensive tailor-made cybersecurity solutions. The only way out of this ‘catch 22’ situation is technology,” says David Foy, Head of International Business Development - Digital Economy at Luxinnovation, Luxembourg’s national innovation agency. “More automated services are needed, which would free humans to focus on the most qualified aspects where they are really needed.”
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The Luxemburg LTIO Tel Aviv team: Daphna Brunshtein-Frucht and Einat Schreiber with David Foy from Luxinnovation at Cybertech
(Photo: LTIO Tel aviv)
Cyber nation
The Israeli technology solutions developed in this field were put in the spotlight during CyberTech Tel Aviv 2024, which gathered around 10,000 participants from around 50 different countries on 8-10 April 2024. “The event featured a concentration of extremely interesting technologies,” says Mr Foy.
“Despite recent challenges, Israel's tech industry is not just surviving; investment flows and VC activities have remained robust, proving the sector's unflagging innovation excellence,” says Ilana Sherrington Hoffman, Global Partnerships at Israel’s Startup Nation Central. “The country continues to attract investors looking for bold and determined solutions to shared global challenges with high potential opportunities. With attractive valuations and significant growth potential, the Israeli tech ecosystem is showing characteristic resilience.”
Cyber is at the heart of this dynamic evolution. “Israel's high-tech scene is dominated by the cyber industry. Known as a startup nation, Israel is actually a cyber nation,” comments Daniel Martin, Executive Director at CYBER7, Israels national cyber security innovation community and point out the particularly innovative aspects of this community. “Cyber companies are able to think outside the box, identify market needs, and act quickly and efficiently, which drives their growth and success.”
He also sees the need for using technology to overcome current challenges. “My prediction is that AI technologies will be integrated into more and more products in the near future,” he says. “Several systems and capabilities are also being consolidated under one platform.”
Luxembourg: A focus on open, international collaboration
Cybersecurity is also a top-level priority in Luxembourg. The country has a unique perspective on cybersecurity, considering it not only to be important for cyber defence but also an important element for economic competitiveness. At the international level, it is widely recognised as a trusted data hub and home to the world’s first digital embassy, opened by Estonia in 2018.
Providing companies with hands-on tools that help them increase their level of cybersecurity is a government priority, and software developed by Luxembourg’s public sector CERTs – Computer Emergency Response Teams – is made available to the national and international community via open source.
“Two aspects of Luxembourg that really stand out are our open-source approach and other commitment to international cooperation,” Mr Foy points out after speaking at the panel “Advancing cybersecurity through global collaboration in cyber” at CyberTech Tel Aviv. “I met people from across the world who are using solutions originating from Luxembourg in their daily work. Supporting each other across borders is also part of our DNA.”
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David Foy, Luxinnovation, (third from the right) speaking on the panel “International dialogue of cyber leaders on the greatest cyber challenges of 2024” at Cybertech Tel Aviv 2024
(Photo: CyberTech)
Secure solutions for finance
Among other things, CyberTech Tel Aviv featured technology developed to ensure security in fintech. “Luxembourg is one of the Eurozone’s leading financial centres and the second largest investment fund centre in the world, so this is obviously a relevant field for us,” Mr Foy underlines. “The country is clearly interesting for ‘finsec’ companies wanting to explore the scaling up of their activities on the European market as we have a tight ecosystem with accessible decision makers of major financial institutions.”
He also points out that selling cybersecurity services from a strategic location in the EU is a major advantage when targeting European customers. “We are talking about protecting highly sensitive core data that needs to remain hosted within the EU. Running cybersecurity software-as-a-service solutions out of Luxembourg can therefore be very interesting,” he concludes.
Are you interesting in exploring the opportunity of scaling your cybersecurity business in Europe via Luxembourg? Feel free to contact the Luxembourg Trade and Investment Office in Tel Aviv which can provide you with detailed information, key contacts and support along the way.
First published: 12:04, 09.05.24
