SUCCESS CASES

The boost of the cybersecurity industry by the National Institute of Cybersecurity in Spain.

The Challenge Addressed

The National Cybersecurity Institute of Spain (INCIBE) is a public entity under the Ministry for Digital Transformation of the Government of Spain. Its main mission is to strengthen cybersecurity in Spain, promoting digital trust and resilience in the use of cyberspace. To this end, INCIBE works in several areas, including critical infrastructure protection, security incident response, cybersecurity awareness and training, and support for innovation and technological development in the sector. In addition, it manages INCIBE-CERT, which is the security incident response center of reference for citizens and private law entities in Spain.

As part of the European response to the crisis caused by COVID-19, INCIBE was chosen by the Spanish government to implement a major investment of 224 million euros to support the cybersecurity industry in Spain. The challenge for the organization, which due to its legal characteristics could not grant public aid, was to execute an investment of that volume in an agile, transparent, controlled manner and in just a few years.

This was to be done, moreover, by achieving results, effects and impacts capable of changing the security guidelines of many entities and, especially, the Spanish public sector; and, at the same time, boosting the industry in Spain to overcome the technological challenges of the next decade.

Novadays' Contribution

Novadays started working for INCIBE in 2021, being awarded a contract for assistance and advice on Public Procurement of Innovation. A year later, Novadays was awarded one of the three Technical Offices tendered by the entity to receive technical, economic and legal support for the management of projects contracted under the Strategic Initiative for Public Procurement of Innovation and months later took over a second batch of Technical Office, currently being responsible for two of the three existing Technical Offices.

Throughout this journey, Novadays has made available to INCIBE all our Capabilities of study and analysis of public policies, strategic direction and investment programming, creation of tools for procurement and policy implementation, mobilizing a team of engineers specialized in cybersecurity, legal experts in public procurement and financial experts in management of European funds and compliance.

The two Technical Offices contracts were extended to the beginning of 2025, so the company will continue to work together with INCIBE professionals in the management of this ambitious program.

Impact and Results Obtained

Novadays' technical assistance for INCIBE has had important results and impacts, including:

  • Conducting a comparative study of all existing cybersecurity instruments and programs in Europe and other countries of interest.
  • The strategic design of the Public Procurement of Innovation Strategic Initiative, as well as the institutional defense and public presentation of the Initiative.
  • The implementation of the Initiative through specific Pre-commercial Public Procurement specifications, which have been the basis for all tenders carried out by INCIBE in this Initiative to date, as well as support in the signing of contracts and the specific definition of the projects to be undertaken.
  • The creation of two Technical Offices responsible for monitoring the projects of the first tender, the largest in volume and aimed at financing R&D programs of public-private interest; and the projects of the second, third and fourth tenders related to the creation of solutions for public challenges.
  • In execution of the IECPI, to date, INCIBE has awarded through four tenders a total of 194 million euros to 110 companies for the development of 156 different projects.

The Government of Spain promotes awareness of INCIBE's Strategic Initiative for Public Procurement of Innovation (IECPI).

INCIBE presents the impact of disruptive technologies on IECPI

INCIBE launches the IV call for Public Procurement of Innovation in cybersecurity with an investment of 48 million euros

INCIBE publishes a map of companies participating in its Strategic Initiative for Public Procurement of Innovation.