The NIS 2 Directive and the cybersecurity of public administrations

Abstract

This article is devoted to the issue of cybersecurity of public administration. The aim is to characterise the actions taken by public administration entities in ensuring the cybersecurity of public sector services. There is no doubt that increasing the resilience of the public administration sector to cyberthreats is a key element in the efficiency and effectiveness of public tasks. The discussion in this regard is based on the provisions of the current Act on the National Cybersecurity System and the NIS 2 Directive, under which public administration entities are recognised as so-called essential entities for maintaining critical social or economic activities. Following the introduction of this Directive, it became necessary to amend the National Cybersecurity System Act. The subject of this article is to present and assess the current legal regulations on public administration cybersecurity and to indicate the rationale for the changes introduced on the basis of the NIS 2 Directive. The analysis of the topic will allow answering the questions: will the NIS 2 Directive allow the introduction of uniform measures to achieve a high common level of cybersecurity across the Union? and secondly, what issues should be taken into account in a public administration’s cybersecurity policy? With the above in mind, the article will present the possibilities of applying new technologies in public administration. The basic concepts introduced by the NIS 2 Directive will also be explained. The author of the paper agrees with the current policy of the European Union, according to which public administration entities have been recognised as so-called „essential entities”, thus supporting the identification of a coordinated framework for public administration cybersecurity. The paper uses a dogmatic-legal method.