Cyber Security in Rail: Regulatory Pressure and Next Steps in Germany & the EU

Increasing pressure in the rail sector: existing and upcoming legislative and regulatory requirements call for an increased focus on cyber security. Our experts Dr. Jens Köhler and Tim Franke shed light on the essential aspects of this topic and point out the necessary next steps.

First of all, relevant requirements at European and national level will be presented, such as EU-NIS2 and the recently adopted EU Cyber Resilience Act (CRA). Special focus will be placed on the following questions: Who has to fulfill which requirements by when? And what steps are necessary to prepare for the requirements?

We will then delve deeper into implementation and approval: International standards such as CLC/TS 50701 and IEC 62443 as well as country-specific guidelines such as the “Sektorleitlinie” of the German Federal Railway Authority (EBA) will be highlighted. The question of how the specifications can be actually implemented in the company will also be discussed.

Dr. Jens Köhler

Dr. Jens Köhler is a senior expert in the field of cyber security at ITK Engineering in Rülzheim. He looks back on over 13 years of experience in the field of cyber security engineering in various industries with increasing cyber security needs – in particular automotive, commercial vehicles, agricultural engineering, railway technology and healthcare. His professional focus is on risk analysis, cyber security concepts, penetration testing and strategic consulting with regard to cyber security regulations. In addition, Mr. Köhler lectures at several universities on the subject of cyber security engineering and acts as a trainer in the customer context. Before joining ITK, he completed his doctorate in Cloud Security and Identity & Access Management at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT).

Tim Franke

In his role as a cyber security expert in the Business Unit Rail at ITK Engineering, Tim Franke has been providing customers with comprehensive advice on technical requirements and actively supporting them in their implementation for more than three years. With a total of nine years of professional experience, he has in-depth specialist knowledge and solid practical experience in the rail, industry and energy sectors. He has successfully supported numerous national and international projects. He currently acts as a key contact for customers who are confronted with the challenges of modern cyber security in the rail industry.