Iceland takes part in NATO Cyber Defense Exercise

Iceland recently participated in the annual NATO Cyber Defense Exercise, Cyber Coalition 2023, along with 35 allied and partner countries. This was the first time Iceland took part in the exercise. Its goal was to test the collective defence capabilities and coordination of the countries' cyber defence forces in response to a major cyber attack.

Over 1300 cyber defence experts attended the exercise, with CERT-IS, the Icelandic Computer Emergency Response Team, participating on behalf of Iceland and coordinating the preparation of the exercise in collaboration with the Directorate for Defence of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. The exercise was partially conducted at the NATO Cyber Security Center in Tallinn, Estonia, but national cyber defence centres also took an active part in the exercise. 

Iceland's participation is an important step in strengthening domestic cyber defences and is part of the government's cyber operations plan, which was approved last year alongside a cyber security strategy for Iceland. Exercises are a key component in preparing and training those who defend the Icelandic cyber domain against cyber attacks and have already proved their value resulting in increased cooperation with partners and allies.