A new study has been launched which will provide the basis for a strategy with which the SESAR Programme and its System Wide Information Management (SWIM) component will address ATM cyber security threats.

The future ATM system in Europe will rely heavily on the virtual exchange of information between a host of stakeholders. This shift in information exchange is facilitated by the SESAR Concept of Operations and in particular SESAR’s SWIM concept. However, greater interconnectivity inevitably raises questions about how to guarantee that these platforms upon which this information exchange takes place are secure, resilient and trustworthy. Technical solutions to cyber threats already exist and are implemented in the SESAR Programme. Nevertheless, given the complex nature of the ATM system, there is a need for a systemic approach to cyber-security for SESAR and in particular SWIM.

The cyber-security study aims to propose a solution for the effective and efficient management of cyber-security in a multi-organisational and multi-cultural context like SESAR. The study will:

• Take a holistic approach to cyber-security which complements the SESAR ATM security approach
• Provide the grounds of a cyber-security strategy for effective development of the new ATM systems and for their interoperability, taking into account examples of best practices implemented in other sectors
• Take into account the definition of standards agreed at an international level

The cyber-security study, the results of which will be available in the first quarter of 2015, is expected to provide SESAR with an assessment of threats and vulnerabilities within the ATM system, a SESAR-targeted cybersecurity framework, a maturity assessment and finally a cyber-security strategy.