Security authorities’ cyber exercise strengthened preparedness against state cyber influence activities

Security authorities' cyber exercise strengthened preparedness against state cyber influence activities

Almost 200 persons and eight organisations participated in the national cyber exercise of the security authorities organised at the Jyväskylä University of Applied Sciences (Jamk) on 22-26 September 2025.

The 2025 cyber exercise of the security authorities developed the capabilities and skills to act in cyber threat situations where those causing the threat have large resources. The threat activities for the exercise were planned by the Jyväskylä Security Technology JYVSECTEC, a research, development and training centre operating as part of the Institute of Information Technology of Jamk, together with the security authorities and their service providers.

"Cooperation with the organisations ensures that the challenges posed by the threat activities are appropriate and relevant. The threat activities of the exercises must also be based on real-life situations or be very similar to these," says Lassi Halkosaari, Specialist at Jamk who was responsible for planning the threat activities at JYVSECTEC.

When the exercise is customised to meet the needs of the participants as well as possible, it also offers the best possible opportunities to develop the capabilities and skills, both of one's own and of the organisations.

"It is well possible that a party with large resources, such as a state actor, could make efforts to influence Finland. The exercise strengthens the capabilities and skills in many ways, including the production of a common situation picture from isolated pieces of information all the way to the strategic level," says Tero Kokkonen, Director of the Institute of Information Technology of Jamk.

The Ministry of Transport and Communications, which also participated in the exercise, is pleased with the improvement in the participants' capabilities.

"The exercise proved once again that the authorities' capabilities to respond to state threats are even better than before," says Rauli Paananen, National Cyber Security Director at the Ministry of Transport and Communications.

Cyber exercises even more important due to global security situation

Regular exercises maintain the capabilities and skills and contribute to ensuring a high level of cyber security in the Finnish society.

"Finland is highly skilled in cyber security, one of the leading countries in the world. These exercises are a key tool for ensuring that this high level of cyber security can be maintained," says Minna Kivimäki, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Transport and Communications, who also visited the exercise.

"The visit showed in a every concrete way what exercising in the national cyber security environment is like. What stuck in my mind, in particular, was that the Realistic Global Cyber Environment RGCE is a learning environment where the participants do not compete against each other; instead, the aim is genuinely to identify issues where further development is needed. Continuous learning is an excellent principle, and the technical level of the exercise was very high indeed," Kivimäki says.

The national cyber exercises are organised by JYVSECTEC (Jyväskylä Security Technology), a research, development and training centre at the Institute of Information Technology of Jamk, in collaboration with the Ministry of Transport and Communications. The Government Security Committee contributes to the implementation of the exercises in a guiding role.

Inquiries:

Rauli Paananen, National Cyber Security Director, [email protected], tel. +358 295 342 212

Tero Kokkonen, Director, Institute of Information Technology, Jyväskylä University of Applied Sciences, [email protected], tel. +358 50 4385 317