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The NIS2 Cyber Score is a free self-assessment tool developed by “Samen Digitaal Veilig” to help organizations evaluate their cybersecurity posture under the NIS2 Directive. Over 100 industry associations support this initiative, particularly targeting manufacturing and industrial sectors. By answering a short questionnaire on www.nis2cyberscore.eu, companies receive a cybersecurity rating, indicating their resilience against cyber threats.
Interestingly, the scoring model considers customer impact as a positive factor—meaning that if a cyberattack would severely disrupt clients, the organization scores higher. This raises questions about risk prioritization, as logically, minimal dependency should be preferable.
The tool serves as a stepping stone to the paid “NIS2 Quality Mark”, which helps businesses prove compliance without repeatedly filling out client-specific questionnaires. It competes with CYRA (Cyber Rating)—though the OT-specific version of CYRA, coming later this year, may be more relevant for industrial firms.
You Should Know: Practical Steps to Improve Your NIS2 Cyber Score
1. Assess Your Current Security Posture
Use the NIS2 Cyber Score tool and analyze gaps. Then, verify with:
Run a basic network security scan (Linux) nmap -sV --script vuln <your-IP-range>
2. Implement Strong Access Controls
Ensure MFA (Multi-Factor Authentication) is enforced:
Enable MFA in Windows Active Directory Set-MsolUser -UserPrincipalName [email protected] -StrongAuthenticationRequirements @{}
3. Monitor & Log Industrial Network Traffic
Use Wireshark for OT network analysis:
Capture ICS/SCADA traffic tshark -i eth0 -Y "modbus || dnp3 || s7comm" -w ot_traffic.pcap
4. Patch Management Automation
For Linux-based ICS systems:
Check for security updates (Debian/Ubuntu) apt list --upgradable | grep security
5. Backup Critical OT Data
Use rsync for secure backups:
rsync -avz --progress /opt/scada/configs backup-server:/secure-ot-backups/
- Test Incident Response with a Ransomware Drill
Simulate an attack using Metasploit:
msfconsole -q -x "use auxiliary/scanner/ssh/ssh_login; set RHOSTS <target-IP>; set USERNAME admin; set PASS_FILE passwords.txt; run"
What Undercode Say
The NIS2 Cyber Score is a useful self-assessment tool, but organizations must go beyond questionnaires. Real resilience comes from:
– Continuous monitoring (SIEM, IDS for OT networks)
– Automated patch management (especially for legacy ICS systems)
– Red team exercises (simulating attacks like ransomware)
– Secure backups (air-gapped, immutable storage)
While the scoring model has quirks (like rewarding high customer impact), the NIS2 Quality Mark could simplify compliance. However, CYRA’s upcoming OT-focused rating may offer better industrial relevance.
Prediction
As NIS2 enforcement tightens, more industrial firms will seek automated compliance tools. Expect AI-driven OT security assessments and real-time cyber scoring to dominate by 2026.
Expected Output:
- NIS2 Cyber Score Tool: nis2cyberscore.eu
- CYRA (Cyber Rating): cyberrating.nl
- OT Security Commands: Wireshark, Nmap, Rsync, Metasploit
IT/Security Reporter URL:
Reported By: Rob Hulsebos – Hackers Feeds
Extra Hub: Undercode MoN
Basic Verification: Pass ✅
