Croatian and Slovenian Hospitals Boost Cybersecurity for Patient Safety

Eleven hospitals across Croatia and Slovenia are joining forces to bolster their defenses against cyber threats through the European project ShieldHealthAdria. Co-funded by the EU's Digital Europe program, the two-year initiative is led by Telekom Slovenije, with Combis, part of the HT Group, managing the assessment of hospital resilience, implementation of security solutions, and training of healthcare staff.

The project's concrete goal is to enable hospitals to identify threats more quickly, maintain operations under pressure, and reliably protect patient data and safety. As healthcare increasingly relies on digital systems and connected medical devices, the sector's vulnerability to cyberattacks grows. ShieldHealthAdria aims to shift hospitals from a reactive to a proactive cybersecurity stance, aligning with the NIS2 directive and national legislation.

Telekom Slovenije and Combis will conduct cybersecurity and regulatory compliance assessments, including NIS2 and GDPR, in five Slovenian and six Croatian hospitals. Based on these findings, modular, technologically neutral solutions will be implemented and validated. These solutions cover endpoint protection, network monitoring, medical device security, privileged access management, and intrusion detection. A significant focus is placed on human factors, with a training program designed for over 1,000 healthcare professionals in both countries.

Dejan Šošter, the main project coordinator at Telekom Slovenije, stated, "With the ShieldHealthAdria project, we want to provide healthcare institutions with practical tools and knowledge for effective cybersecurity risk management, thereby contributing to greater trust in digital healthcare." The project aims to create a replicable model for transferring solutions to other European healthcare institutions, potentially reaching over 10,000 stakeholders. The initiative underscores the critical link between cybersecurity and patient safety, emphasizing that IT disruptions in hospitals can endanger patients and erode public trust.

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Kibernetička sigurnost je danas usko povezana sa sigurnošću i zdravljem pacijenata. Kada IT u bolnici stane, ugroženi su pacijenti i povjerenje građana u zdravstveni sustav. Ovim projektom, zajedno s Telekomom Slovenije i bolničkim timovima pomažemo ustanovama u identifikaciji rizika, implementaciji učinkovitih tehnoloških sigurnosnih mjera i rješenja te razvoju vlastitih kapaciteta za upravljanje sigurnošću. Sve s ciljem povećanja kibernetičke otpornosti zdravstvenog sustava i usklađivanja ustanova sa Zakonom o kibernetičkoj sigurnosti. Cilj projekta nije jednokr