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06 9 2016

NATO expands partnership with industry through new information sharing agreement with Leidos


The NATO Communications and Information (NCI) Agency and Leidos signed an Industry Partnership Agreement (I-PA) on cyber information sharing in the margins of NITEC16 in Tallinn.

In light of rapidly evolving cyber tactics and shared risks in cyberspace, the need to work side-by-side with industry partners on pressing cyber-challenges becomes increasingly important.

The new agreement with Leidos will foster collaboration and timely sharing of information, allowing both parties to enhance situational awareness and better protect their respective networks and systems. In practice it will facilitate rapid and early bilateral exchange of non-classified technical information related to cyber threats and vulnerabilities. This information will be integrated into NCI Agency 24/7 detection and prevention processes enhancing further NATO's cyber security posture.

"We know we need to be more predictive and less reactive to fast-evolving cyber threats," said Koen Gijsbers, the General Manager of the NCI Agency. "Closer partnership with industry is essential in order to better align the speed of our defences with the speed of the threat. This is an imperative that has been reinforced numerous times here at NITEC16, and we are pleased to take another step forward in improving our collective cyber defence through our agreement today with Leidos."

NATO expands partnership with industry through new information sharing agreement with Leidos

A collective approach to cyber security

"Leidos is very excited to build upon and expand our relationship with NATO with the signing of this IPA. We are proud to bring two decades of Leidos' cyber experience to mutually enhance cyber situational awareness in the protection and resilience of NATO networks and systems", said Jeff McDaniels, Leidos' VP for International Strategy and Business Development.

Taking place in the run-up to NATO's Warsaw Summit, where cyber defence will be high on the agenda, the agreement with Leidos is an important part of the effort to bolster the Alliance's cyber defence posture through the NATO Industry Cyber Partnership (NICP). Alliance Heads of State and Government endorsed the NICP in 2014 to pave the way for collaboration with the private sector in addressing cyber threats and risks. The agreement with Leidos is the latest in a series of important agreements with Industry in the framework of the NICP.

For more information contact: Michal Olejarnik, NCI Agency Communication Manager, michal.olejarnik@ncia.nato.int or +32 475 90 70 40.