NATO CCDCOE

Yesterday, we were pleased to host senior diplomats from the Nordic-Baltic region at CCDCOE as part of a UK-facilitated regional diplomats training. After an overview of the work of the Centre, the diplomats participated in a tabletop exercise focusing on strategic decision-making within cyber conflict. The exercise was set in CCDCOE’s Locked Shields world, in which fictional countries are involved in an international conflict.

📣 Registration for our flagship conference CyCon 2026: Securing Tomorrow is now open! Join us in Tallinn, Estonia, 26–29 May 2026, for the 18th edition of CyCon — a leading interdisciplinary conference exploring the forefront of cyber conflict. 👉See the full programme and secure your spot: cycon.org #CyCon2026

This week, @ccdcoe hosted the Cyberspace Operations 2026 Pre-Annual Discipline Conference and a Training Needs Analysis Workshop. 👉As the Department Head for the Cyberspace Operations Discipline, CCDCOE brought together education and training stakeholders from across the NATO enterprise and NATO education and training facilities to review the current state and future direction of NATO cyberspace operations training.

📣Last call for registration: join the next iteration of the @ccdcoe Executive Cyber Seminar in Brussels on 14–16 April! The seminar will provide senior civilian and military leaders with strategic and operational perspectives on how NATO and its Allies prepare for, operate in, and sustain advantage in cyberspace across the full spectrum – from competition to crisis and armed conflict. 👉More information and registration: ccdcoe.org/training/execu…

Defence Forces Ireland recently hosted the @ccdcoe “Cyber in Operations Handbook” workshop at McKee Barracks in Dublin. 👉The goal for this CCDCOE project is to create a guide to incorporating cyber into all aspects of military operations. The workshop was attended by a project group of 25 personnel from NATO, partner nations, academics, and industry experts who are contributing to the production of this valuable publication. Many thanks to Defence Forces Ireland for hosting the workshop, and to all participants for their valuable contributions!

🇺🇦Last week, @ccdcoe Director Tõnis Saar visited Kyiv, participating at the Kyiv International Cyber Resilience Forum as well as holding meetings with representatives of Ukraine's security and defence sector - SSSCIP, SBU, NCSCC & MFA. The meeting with the Deputy Foreign Minister & Chief Digital Transformation Officer concluded with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the @MFA_Ukraine and @ccdcoe. The programme also included meetings at the Hennadii Udovenko Diplomatic Academy of Ukraine and the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine.

Happy Independence Day to our host nation, Estonia! 🇪🇪 @ccdcoe was honoured to participate in the Defence Forces Independence Day parade in Tallinn with our flag unit. 📷Estonian Defence Forces

🇺🇦 Yesterday, we had the honour of welcoming Olena Kondratiuk, Deputy Head of the Verkhovna Rada (Parliament) of Ukraine, to @ccdcoe. During the visit, we provided an overview of the Centre’s mission and discussed how to safeguard elections against cyberattacks, information operations, and other forms of malicious interference. We also exchanged views on the impact of social media and the spread of disinformation. We are pleased with the strong cooperation we have built together with Ukraine and look forward to further strengthening our collaboration in the future.

The call for this year’s CyCon volunteers is open - we’re looking for enthusiastic and reliable team players to help make the conference a success! 👉Learn more and ⏰apply before 6 March via: cr14.teamdash.com/p/job/36Nv8xE4…

This week we had the opportunity to arrange a meeting together with colleagues from the 🇪🇪Estonian Police and Border Guard Board (@Politsei) to explore cooperation with the @ccdcoe 🤝 We identified several concrete areas for cooperation in exercises, courses, research, and joint scenario development (whole-of-society approach), bringing together operational investigators, intelligence capabilities, legal expertise, and cyber defence exercises.

The latest episode of the award-winning Estonian science competition show Rakett69 puts the spotlight on cybersecurity.🛡️ Young contestants tackled real-world cyber challenges - spotting phishing attempts, defending systems from cyberattacks, and restoring power after a grid disruption. The tasks were run on CCDCOE’s power grid, the same infrastructure used in exercises Locked Shields and Crossed Swords. We hope the episode sparks curiosity about cybersecurity and critical infrastructure protection among students. 📺 Watch: jupiter.err.ee/1038463/rakett…

As part of the state visit, we were honoured to introduce King Frederik X and Queen Mary of Denmark @ccdcoe's role in advancing the Alliance’s cyber capabilities, including our exercises and the necessity to focus on multi-domain operations. 🇩🇰 Denmark has been a member of CCDCOE since 2019 and has contributed to our mission significantly. Mange tak! Photos: Arno Mikkor

Preparations for #LockedShields2026 are in full swing! 🛡️Today and tomorrow mark a key milestone in planning the exercise: the Main Planning Conference in Tallinn, bringing together over 100 planners and organisers to shape the next iteration of the world’s largest and most complex live-fire cyber defence exercise. Thank you to all the participants for your support in preparing for tomorrow's challenges!

Digitalization delivers transformative benefits, but only when the digital infrastructure is secure and resilient. The 3rd edition of the Guide to Developing a National Cybersecurity Strategy provides practical guidance for developing comprehensive and inclusive strategies to address growing cyber risks and ensure national digital resilience. With contributions from 39 expert organizations across sectors, including NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence, this edition offers valuable insights for governments, policymakers, and practitioners. 👉 Access the Guide: ncsguide.org

🇺🇦Yesterday, we had the pleasure of meeting Mr Volodymyr Boiechko, Ambassador of Ukraine to Estonia, to discuss cooperation in cyber defence. We agreed to establish a special partnership between CCDCOE and the Embassy of Ukraine in Estonia - an Advisory Board of the Embassy devoted to exchanging best practices with the Centre and developing practical materials and solutions to counter real threats. 👉estonia.mfa.gov.ua/en/news/ambass…

We are honoured that the Cyber Law Toolkit has been recognised as a finalist in the International Partnership category of the Third Annual Cyber Policy Awards, presented by @IST_org 🏆

As we step into 2026, preparedness remains key. With the participation of 40 nations, #CrossedSwords2025 once again demonstrated that effective cyber defence is built on cooperation, shared learning, and collective resilience. Stay engaged - exciting developments are planned for the year ahead.

The Proceedings from the NIU’s Intelligence Studies Summit (ISS) are now available, featuring a paper by James Austin, @ccdcoe Operations Branch Researcher and Australian Defence Liaison Officer, exploring if cyber intelligence is or should be an intelligence discipline. Reviewing recent cyber events and the digitisation of the maritime domain it demonstrates CyINT is a requirement either way, and this premise is further established from the process and observations obtained in the development of the CCDCOE CyINT course. 🔗 Read the paper on NIU’s website: ni-u.edu/ISS/

Season’s greetings from all of us at NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence! ❄️