With the seismic shifts in the geopolitical landscape, Hunt & Hackett has observed a notable increase in the activity of Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) groups targeting the public sector. In recent years, these developments have created a more complex and dynamic threat landscape, where state and non-state actors are increasingly intertwined, consolidating their activities and tactics to undermine the performance of governmental organizations. This trend has also been highlighted by leading security and intelligence agencies in the Netherlands, including the NCSC, AIVD, and MIVD. Erik Akerboom, head of the AIVD, recently emphasized that “criminal actors often overlap with state actors” and that cyber threats to Dutch organizations are on the rise.
Since the Netherlands is known for its highly digitalized society and fulfills, after Germany, the role as the second largest European importer and distributor of goods, it is has become an appealing target for threat actors seeking to digitally paralyze public institutions and steal or leak confidential data.
How can you address this growing threat?
There is this legendary saying on how to overcome your adversaries: “know thy enemy and know thyself; in a hundred battles, you will never be defeated.” Knowing your enemy starts with gaining an understanding of your specific threat landscape, your adversaries’ intentions, their modus operandi, and specific attacking methods. The following sections provide a glimpse of the (central) government specific threat landscape, highlighting trends, upcoming challenges and obstacles, followed up by the Hunt & Hackett approach on how to become more resilient.
