Last week, the government approved the draft of a new law on cyber security, which was prepared by the National Office for Cyber and Information Security. The approval of the draft law means that we could see a law implementing the NIS2 Directive come into force by the end of 2024, which will significantly "shuffle the cards" in the field of cyber security in many respects.

What does the new law bring?

·      Implementation of the European NIS2 Directive: The bill introduces the standards of the European NIS2 Security Directive, which aims to increase the security of networks and information systems in EU Member States. The legislation should increase the overall resilience of Member States and their backbone infrastructure to cyber threats. 

·      Screening and exclusion of at-risk suppliers: The draft law contains, inter alia, mechanisms for screening and possible exclusion of individual suppliers who are members of the supply chain and who pose a security risk to the State.

·      Extension of the scope of protected entities: The Bill very significantly extends the range of bodies and persons subject to enhanced protection, including organisations of economic and societal importance.

·      Introduction of new processes: The new law introduces new processes and tools which will (hopefully) in some respects also simplify and clarify the existing legislation.

·      Introduction of security incident reporting obligations: The Bill introduces an obligation for providers to report on the management of cyber security incidents, in which it is similar to the GDPR's protection of personal data. However, the tool for all communication between providers and the NCIB will be the new NCIB Portal, which, once implemented, should reduce the administrative burden on individual obliged entities. 

Significant changes and objectives

The Bill emphasises the introduction of preventive measures and ensuring long-term sustainable cybersecurity by increasing the resilience of key individuals and institutions throughout society. 

What is next?

Certain amendments will now be incorporated into the Bill, after which the Bill will be submitted to the Chamber of Deputies of the Parliament of the Czech Republic for consideration.

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