Cybersecurity dominated the opening day of Web Summit 2025 in Lisbon, with experts emphasizing the urgent need for Europe to bolster its defenses against a constantly evolving threat landscape. Luísa Proença, Portugal’s deputy national director of the Judicial Police, underscored that technological advancements and geopolitical instability, including the ongoing war in Eastern Europe, present both “new threats” and “new opportunities” in this domain.
Proença stressed the critical importance of proactive measures, advocating for a multi-faceted approach involving innovation, technology, and robust partnerships. These collaborations must encompass private companies, academic institutions, research organizations, civil society, local communities, and citizens themselves. This holistic strategy is crucial to effectively understand and address the complex dynamics of cybercrime.
The increasing interconnectedness of critical infrastructures across European Union countries, coupled with heightened national agency reliance on digital systems, presents a double-edged sword. While this integration facilitates collaboration and broader impact solutions, it also amplifies risk. A security breach in one area can cascade through interconnected systems, creating vulnerabilities across multiple countries.
Proença highlighted the need for swift action to mitigate these interconnected risks. This includes equipping law enforcement agencies with the specialized training required to navigate these complex threats and establishing comprehensive prevention strategies.
A crucial element in this defense strategy is addressing human vulnerability. Recognizing that individuals often represent the weakest link in security chains, Proença emphasized the importance of digital literacy education. She called for greater engagement with young people in schools to foster awareness about cybersecurity best practices and responsible online behavior.
European-level coordination is paramount to building an effective “digital immune system.” Proença stressed the significance of collective intelligence gathering and threat analysis across national borders. “We’re all working together to understand, globally, what these threats are and what we might feel in Portugal,” she explained, emphasizing the interconnected nature of cybercrime in a borderless digital world.
To bolster its resilience against external threats, Proença advocated for strategic investment in Europe’s technological autonomy. This includes leveraging existing strengths in research, development, and talent to create European-designed cybersecurity solutions. While advocating for self-reliance, she clarified that this doesn’t equate to isolationism; rather, it emphasizes reducing dependency on potentially vulnerable external providers.
Beyond these core challenges, Proença identified a range of pressing threats facing the EU. These include criminal networks exploiting migration vulnerabilities, child sexual exploitation, drug trafficking, money laundering, and the rise of crypto-based financial crimes used to fund terrorism. She underscored the need for enhanced secure communications infrastructure within Europe to counter these transnational dangers.
Despite acknowledging the ever-present evolution of cyber threats, Proença offered a cautiously optimistic outlook. She noted that the European Union is demonstrably better prepared today compared to previous eras thanks in part to strengthening regulatory frameworks and collaborative efforts. However, she emphasized the need for continuous advancement and adaptation to effectively address the dynamic landscape of digital crime.
“We will never be fully prepared,” Proença concluded, “but at least we are aware of the risk and we are working towards being more and more capable.” The ongoing race between technological innovation and criminal exploitation necessitates a constant state of vigilance and evolution in Europe’s cybersecurity posture.
