Five Gipuzkoan industrial companies tested the cybersecurity of their new products during the first year of life of the ZIUR laboratory
Five Gipuzkoan industrial companies tested the cybersecurity of their new products during the first year of life of the ZIUR laboratory
Twelve months after its inauguration, the general deputy of Gipuzkoa, Markel Olano, visited the laboratory of the Gipuzkoa Industrial Cybersecurity Center on February 28, which has become a reference infrastructure for companies in Gipuzkoa when it comes to raising the protection against cyber threats.
Five Gipuzkoan companies (Alkar, Arregui, Lazpiur, GH and ABC Compressors) have used the ZIUR laboratory facilities to evaluate aspects related to cybersecurity in their products. Different startups have also carried out behavior tests of their solutions in industrial environments and demonstrations of operation to their clients.
Along these lines, "ZIUR is working to promote the evaluation of the safety of industrial products by companies", explains its director, Koldo Peciña. To this end, the Department of Economic Promotion of the Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa has the aid program "Industrial Cybersecurity Product" that aims to encourage companies to implement cybersecurity from the design phase and facilitate the possibility of checking the security of their products in industrial environments.
The ZIUR laboratory has also hosted training sessions with students of the Mondragon Unibertsitatea Master's Degree in Cybersecurity and the Zubiri Manteo and EASO Politeknikoa VET centres. 40 companies have attended training workshops to know how to detect and manage a cyber attack and sessions have also been held in collaboration with the development agencies Iraurgi Berritzen, Urola Costa and Oarsoaldea, and with the College of Engineers.
Provincial visit
On February 28, the deputy general of Gipuzkoa, Markel Olano, visited the ZIUR headquarters, in the Zuatzu business park in Donostia, accompanied by the regional deputy for Economic Promotion, Tourism and Rural Affairs, Jabier Larrañaga, and the director of Strategic Projects , Unai Andueza. There they held a working meeting with the director of ZIUR, Koldo Peciña, and the technical director, María Penilla, to find out about the evolution of the center since its launch in 2019.
Olano highlighted that the services that ZIUR planned to offer are already underway and a network of collaborators has been woven in the field of cybersecurity. As he warned him,
cybersecurity is a threat that will spread over the next few years, hand in hand with a growing digitization process that the economy of Gipuzkoa and the world is experiencing. For this reason, the regional official stressed that the ZIUR project makes "more sense than ever". “The industry is the backbone of our economy, one of our hallmarks, and it is in the midst of a process of change. Digitization brings with it numerous advantages but also threats, and ZIUR's role has to be to protect that flank, to ensure that the digital transformation of our companies is carried out smoothly. And, in turn, promote the competitive advantages that can be generated by having cybersecure companies and products”, explained the deputy general.
For this reason, he considered that time has shown that the launch of an industrial cybersecurity center in Gipuzkoa was "a complete success". In these two years, the increase in cyberattacks in all areas, including industry, has been a challenge for industrial companies in Gipuzkoa. The rise of remote work, fueled by the pandemic, has had a direct impact on the cybersecurity of companies. For this reason, the advice, analysis and awareness-raising work carried out by ZIUR is necessary to reinforce the protection of companies against cyber-attacks.
The implementation of the ZIUR laboratory in 2021 represented a decisive advance in the center's activity. This infrastructure is available to industrial companies, cybersecurity manufacturers, integrators of technological solutions and training centers in the territory, free of charge.
The laboratory allows real simulations of cyberattacks in industrial plants to be carried out, to analyze new security functionalities and verify their adaptation to industrial environments, to test new devices or products developed by Gipuzkoan companies, to carry out innovation projects and to hold professional training and education sessions.