An overview of Horizon Europe Cluster 3: Civil security for society

Horizon Europe (HE) Cluster 3 Work Programme[1] (WP) addresses the issues brought on by ongoing security threats, “including cybercrime, as well as natural and man-made disasters”. It also aims to draw lessons from the COVID-19 crisis in terms of “prevention, mitigation, preparedness and capacity building”. A key aspect of the desired solutions is the cross-sectoral approach. 

Cluster 3 encompasses six destinations for a biannual budget (2021-2022) of 413M€ and 80+ projects funded. 

Destination 1: Better protect the EU and its citizens against Crime and Terrorism
Destination 2: Effective management of EU external borders
Destination 3: Resilient Infrastructure
Destination 4: Increased Cybersecurity
Destination 5: Disaster-Resilient Society for Europe
Destination 6: Strengthened Security Research and Innovation

Figure 1 The six destinations of Cluster 3

Destination 1: Better protect the EU and its citizens against Crime and Terrorism

Expected impacts from the Horizon Europe Strategic Plan 2021-2024: “Crime and terrorism are more effectively tackled, while respecting fundamental rights, […] thanks to more powerful prevention, preparedness and response, a better understanding of related human, societal and technological aspects, and the development of cutting-edge capabilities for police authorities […] including measures against cybercrime.”​
The call topics are related to the following areas:
+      Improved crime scene investigations related to transfer, persistence and background abundance​
+      Better understanding the influence of organisational cultures and human interactions in the forensic context as well as a common lexicon​
+      Enhanced fight against the abuse of online gaming culture by extremists​
+      Public spaces are protected while respecting privacy and avoiding mass surveillance​
+      Effective fight against corruption​
+      Effective fight against illicit drugs production and trafficking​
+      Effective fight against trafficking in human beings​
 
Broad goal and synergies: 
The goal of this Destination is to “bring improved prevention, investigation and mitigation of impacts of crime, including of new/emerging criminal modi operandi. Research and innovation will support Police Authorities and other relevant end-users in better tackling crime, including cybercrime, and terrorism as well as different forms of serious and organised crime. Projects within this Destination will also deliver operational tools for enhanced criminal investigation capabilities for Police Authorities and relevant end-users”. 
This Destination aims to “contribute significantly to the implementation of the Security Union Strategy, i.e. to include Research and Innovation as one of the key building blocks enabling the achievement of the overall policy objectives”. It also fits into the Counter-Terrorism Agenda, and the security dimension of the New Pact on Migration and Asylum.
 
Destination 2: Effective management of EU external borders

Expected impacts from the Horizon Europe Strategic Plan 2021-2024: “Legitimate passengers and shipments travel more easily into the EU, while illicit trades, trafficking, piracy, terrorist and other criminal acts are prevented, due to improved air, land and sea border management and maritime security including better knowledge on social factors.”
The topics are the following:
+      Improved underwater detection and control capabilities to protect maritime areas and sea harbours​
+      Enhanced security of, and combating the frauds on, identity management and identity and travel documents​
+      Better, more portable and quicker analysis and detection for customs​
 
Broad goal and synergies: 
This Destination responds to the challenges identified by the Security Union Strategy and the border management and security dimensions of the New Pact on Migration and Asylum. Topics included under the Destination are aimed at ensuring strong European land, air and sea external borders. 
This involves:
+      “Developing strong capabilities for checks at external borders hence safeguarding the integrity and functioning of the Schengen area without controls at the internal borders, by compensating the absence of intra-EU border checks
+      Being capable to carry out systematic border checks, including identity, health and security checks as necessary, while facilitating the travel of bona fide travellers and respecting rights and possible vulnerabilities of individuals; 
+      Providing integrated and continuous border surveillance, situational awareness and analysis support; combating identity and document frauds;
+      Supporting future technology for the European Border and Coast Guard; supporting the interoperability and performance of EU data exchange and analysis IT systems; 
+      Supporting better risk detection, incident response and crime prevention; improving European preparedness to, and management of, future rapidly evolving changes; and updating our maritime security management including migration, trafficking as well as search and rescue capabilities”. 
 
Destination 3: Resilient Infrastructure

Proposals for topics under this Destination should set out a credible pathway to contributing to the following expected impact of the Horizon Europe Strategic Plan 2021-2024: " […] resilience and autonomy of physical and digital infrastructures are enhanced, and vital societal functions are ensured, thanks to more powerful prevention, preparedness and response, a better understanding of related human, societal and technological aspects, and the development of cutting-edge capabilities for […] infrastructure operators […]”​
The related topics are: 
+      Nature-based Solutions integrated to protect local Infrastructure​
+      Autonomous systems used for infrastructure ​protection
 
Broad goal and synergies
The protection of critical infrastructures for the EU and its Member States is on top of the agenda of the Security Union Strategy for the coming years.
The expected solutions are “technological complex applications that offer the possibility for better prevention and preparedness can enable efficient response to different threats and fast recovery”. The hybrid nature (Physical and Cyber) of potential attacks is to be considered in the overall risk scenarios, “since they are designed to target vulnerabilities and aim in many cases at disrupting infrastructure and its services”. 
 
Destination 4: Increased Cybersecurity

Expected impacts: “Increased cybersecurity and a more secure online environment by developing and using effectively EU and Member States’ capabilities in digital technologies supporting protection of data and networks aspiring to technological sovereignty in this field, while respecting privacy and other fundamental rights; this should contribute to secure services, processes and products, as well as to robust digital infrastructures capable to resist and counter cyber-attacks and hybrid threats.” 
The related topics of the Call are:
+   Improved monitoring of threats, intrusion detection and response in complex and heterogeneous digital systems and infrastructures​
+  Trustworthy methodologies, tools and data security “by design” for dynamic testing of potentially vulnerable, insecure hardware and software components​
+    Transition towards Quantum-Resistant Cryptography​
+   Development and validation of processes and tools used for agile certification of ICT products, ICT services and ICT processes​
 
Broad goal and synergies: 
Cybersecurity research and innovation activities will “support a Europe fit for the digital age, enabling and supporting digital innovation while highly preserving privacy, security, safety and ethical standards. They will contribute to the implementation of the digital and privacy policy of the Union in particular the NIS Directive, the EU Cybersecurity Act, the EU Cybersecurity Strategy, the GDPR, and the future e-Privacy Regulation”. 
 
Destination 5: Disaster-Resilient Society for Europe

Expected impacts: “Losses from natural, accidental and man-made disasters are reduced through enhanced disaster risk reduction based on preventive actions, better societal preparedness, and resilience and improved disaster risk management in a systemic way.” ​​
Topics of the Call:
+      Enhanced citizen preparedness in the event of a disaster or crisis-related emergency​
+      Improved quality assurance / quality control of data used in decision-making related to risk management of natural hazards, accidents and CBRN events ​
+      Enhanced preparedness and management of High-impact Low-Probability or unexpected events​
+      Better understanding of citizens’ behavioural and psychological reactions in the event of a disaster or crisis situation​
+      Improved impact forecasting and early warning systems supporting the rapid deployment of first responders in vulnerable areas​
+      Improved disaster risk pricing assessment​
+      Improved international cooperation addressing first responder capability gaps ​
+      Enhanced situational awareness and preparedness of first responders and improved capacities to minimise time-to-react in urban areas in the case of CBRN-E-related events​
+      Enhanced capacities of first responders more efficient rescue operations, including decontamination of infrastructures in the case of a CBRN-E event​
 
Broad goal and synergies: 
This Destination “supports the implementation of international policy frameworks (e.g. the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, the Paris Agreement, Sustainable Development Goals), EU disaster risk management policies tackling natural and man-made threats (either accidental or intentional), European Green Deal priorities including the new EU Climate Adaptation Strategy, as well as the Security Union Strategy and the Counter-Terrorism Agenda”.
Furthermore, “the implementation of international policy frameworks requires cross-border and cross-sectoral cooperation an enhanced collaboration among different actors and strengthened knowledge covering the whole disaster management cycle, from prevention and preparedness to response and recovery (and learning)”. 
 
Destination 6: Strengthened Security Research and Innovation

Expected impacts: A number of cross-cutting R&I actions will support all of the above expected impacts:​
+      “Generate knowledge and value in cross-cutting matters in order to avoid sector specific bias and to break silos that impede the proliferation of common security solutions; ​
+      Strengthen key pillars of the research and innovation cycle to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of its contribution to the development of security capabilities;​
+      Support innovation uptake and go-to-market strategies with the aim of paving the way towards an increased industrialisation, commercialisation, adoption and deployment of successful outcomes of security research, thus contributing to reinforce the competitiveness of EU security industry and safeguard the security of supply of EU products in key security areas.” ​
All the expected impacts of Cluster 3 are supported by this Destination. Thus, “Research applied in this domain will contribute to increasing the impact of the work carried out in the EU Security Research and Innovation ecosystem as a whole and to contribute to its core values: Ensuring that security R&I maintains the focus on the potential final use of its outcomes; Contributing to a forward looking planning of EU security capabilities; Ensuring the development of security technologies that are socially acceptable; Paving the way to the industrialisation, commercialisation, acquisition and deployment of successful R&I outcomes; Safeguarding the open strategic autonomy and technological sovereignty of the EU in critical security areas by contributing to a more competitive and resilient EU security technology and industrial base”. 
This Destination is designed to “contribute with instruments that will help bringing these and other developments closer to the market. Such instruments will help developers (including industry, research organisations and academia) to improve the valorisation of their research investment. They will also support buyers and users in materialising the uptake of innovation and further develop their security capabilities”.

Reference
Horizon Europe Work Programme 2021-2022 6. Civil Security for Society, European Commission, (European Commission DecisionC(2022)2975 of 10 May 2022)

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Article courtesy of EAIC member FI Group