Data breaches accounted for 17.4% of cyber incidents affecting public administration in the EU in 2024.

Chinese state-sponsored adversaries targeted industries in 11 countries in 2025

69% of cyber incidents in 2024 targeted central governments in the EU.

60% of all reported cyber incidents in 2024 were Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks.

Hacktivists were responsible for nearly 63% of cyber incidents in the EU in 2024.

European organizations accounted for nearly 22% of global ransomware and extortion victims in 2025

92% of ransomware cases in Europe involved file encryption and data theft in 2025

32% of professionals expect regulatory complexity and global compliance risks to be major concerns in 2026.

30% of professionals indicated that workforce upskilling in data security is very important in 2026.

43% of professionals in digital trust fields identified cloud migration and security as very important focus areas in 2026.

61% of professionals identified AI and machine learning as top technology priorities for 2026.

Only 12% of professionals reported having a strong talent pipeline for digital trust roles.

41% of professionals support statutory cybersecurity guidance for high-risk sectors in 2026.

59% of professionals identified AI-driven social engineering as a significant cyber threat for 2026.

63% of professionals expect to hire for digital trust roles in 2026.

64% of professionals ranked regulatory compliance as a very important priority in 2026.

45% of professionals indicated they will be hiring for more digital trust roles in 2026 than in 2025.

14% of professionals ranked modernizing legacy systems as a top digital trust priority in 2026.

Only 14% of professionals reported that their organization is very prepared to manage generative AI risks in 2026.

18% of professionals believe increased government funding for cyber skills and workforce development is the most important factor for enhancing cybersecurity resilience in their country.