NIS2 Directive Compliance Insights for Businesses

What Is NIS2?

The Network and Information Systems Directive 2 (NIS2) is a stringent regulation that requires vital sectors to improve their cybersecurity measures, incident response plans, and reporting mechanisms. Its mission? To create a high common level of cybersecurity across the EU, keep essential services running, and protect the economy (and society) from cyber incidents.

Here are four critical points of NIS2 you need to be aware of:

Covers more sectors: NIS2 applies to industries like energy, transport, health, digital services, government, wastewater, financial markets, and social networks.

Stricter rules: Organizations must take specific actions to mitigate risks and report major cyber incidents. This includes managing risks from suppliers and staying resilient against cyber threats.

Larger penalties: NIS2 has stricter checks—especially for essential entities. They’ll face active oversight. The directive imposes significant fines for non-compliance to ensure organizations take their cybersecurity obligations seriously.

Unified reporting protocols: The law standardizes incident reporting across the EU. These protocols make sharing and handling information easier while enhancing the collective response to cyber threats.

Who Needs to Comply With NIS2?

NIS2 divides entities into two groups: “essential” and “important.” Compliance obligations apply to both, though essential entities must follow stricter rules.

NIS2 is relevant to the following sectors:

Essential Companies

Energy Supply

Transport

Banking and Financial Market Infrastructure

Healthcare

Digital Infrastructure (including communication networks, data centers, and cloud providers)

Drinking Water Supply

Waste and Wastewater Treatment

Government

Space

Banks and Credit Institutions

IT Service Management (B2B)

Important Companies

Postal and Courier Services

Waste Management

Food Companies

Production, Processing, and Distribution of Chemicals

Manufacturing of Medical Devices, Machinery, and Transport Equipment

Digital Providers (e.g., online marketplaces, search engines, and social media)

Research

6 Key NIS2 Requirements

NIS2 requires organizations to:

Manage risks

Implement comprehensive risk management practices and policies to handle cybersecurity risks.

Secure supply chains

Manage cybersecurity risks from suppliers and make sure they follow security standards.

Respond to incidents

Establish and maintain appropriate mechanisms to find, respond to, and recover from cybersecurity incidents.

Ensure business continuity

Develop and test business continuity and disaster recovery plans to ensure service resilience during a cyber incident.

Report incidents

Report significant cyber incidents to relevant national authorities.

Protect the digital infrastructure

Take extra steps to secure critical digital services that society and the economy need.

How to Prepare for NIS2 Compliance

To prepare for and meet the NIS2 directive’s requirements, follow these steps:

1Determine if your entity is “essential” or “important” under NIS2.

2Do a gap analysis. Compare your current cybersecurity practices against NIS2 requirements. Also, identify and address policy, procedure, and technology gaps.

3Conduct comprehensive cybersecurity risk assessments. Then, develop strategies for incident response and business continuity.

4Revise your cybersecurity policies to align with NIS2. Cover incident reporting, supply chain security, and system resilience.

5Implement potent technical and organizational safeguards. Secure hardware/software, leverage encryption, and enhance access control.

6Refine your plans for swift cyber incident mitigation and establish protocols for timely reporting.

7Facilitate regular cybersecurity and NIS2 awareness sessions to train staff. Also, clarify employee roles in compliance and incident response.

8Assess third-party cybersecurity risks. And mandate NIS2 compliance in service provider contracts.

9Conduct regular NIS2 compliance checks. Use your findings to continuously improve security measures.

10Consult cybersecurity specialists for compliance strategies. Also, integrate frameworks like ISO 27001 to align your practices with international standards.

How Codekeeper Supports Your NIS2 Compliance Efforts

We’ll be honest. Complying with NIS2 won’t be easy. But we can help.

Codekeeper offers solutions that can significantly reduce your workload and help you address several essential NIS2 requirements:

Data Backup and Recovery

Our disaster recovery and escrow solutions securely store your critical code and data. If there’s an incident, you can quickly restore your systems.

We also provide disaster recovery planning to help you recover from cyberattacks.

Supply Chain Security

We designed our SaaS escrow for cloud applications. It keeps your software running—even if your supplier has issues.

Security and Compliance

We use encryption and timestamping to verify your stored data is authentic and unchanged.

Plus, we’re ISO 27001 compliant.

Flexible Agreements

Our base agreements are legally sound and compliant with regulations.

You can customize these agreements to fit your needs, like defining release conditions or specifying beneficiaries.

Assess, Plan, Implement: Your Guide to NIS2 Compliance

Our comprehensive ebook breaks down how NIS2 affects your organization and provides practical guidance to help you meet its requirements. Download the guide now for a detailed overview of the key compliance steps you need to take.

NIS2

Is NIS2 mandatory?
Yes, NIS2 is mandatory for all “essential” or “important” entities in sectors like energy, transport, banking, and healthcare.
How does NIS2 build on the original NIS directive?
NIS2 broadens the scope of the original directive, expands the range of entities covered, strengthens security requirements, enhances supply chain security, and pushes for stricter incident reporting laws.
How will NIS2's regulations be monitored and enforced?
Member States are responsible for implementing and enforcing NIS2. This may involve establishing national competent authorities to oversee compliance and impose sanctions for non-compliance.
How does NIS2 relate to other EU cybersecurity policies?
NIS2 complements other EU policies and regulations, like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Together, they work to ensure a comprehensive cybersecurity framework across the EU.
Which basic measures does the NCSC recommend?
The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) recommends basic measures such as effective access control, secure configuration, network security, malware protection, and patch management.

Codekeeper's Customized Compliance Solutions for Your Business

We understand that compliance isn’t one-size-fits-all. That’s why we offer:

Needs assessments: We evaluate your IT infrastructure, risk profile, and vendor networks to identify compliance gaps.
Scalable disaster recovery: Our solutions adapt to your specific recovery objectives.
Customized escrow agreements: We tailor escrow agreements to address supply chain security and vendor oversight requirements.
Ongoing support: Our team is available 24/7 and can guide you as regulations evolve.

Chat About Compliance

The NIS2 Directive Explained