The NIS2 Directive is a bold step forward in Europe’s approach to cybersecurity. It significantly broadens the scope of regulated sectors and sets higher expectations for how critical infrastructure organizations protect themselves. From healthcare and energy providers to transport networks, cloud platforms, and digital service operators, NIS2 demands a more proactive stance on risk management, incident response, and supply chain security. The intention is clear: make organizations more resilient to increasingly complex cyber threats.
The Limitations of NIS2 Compliance Alone
The reality is that compliance alone does not stop cyber-attacks. Passing an audit or demonstrating that the right policies exist on paper is not the same as being able to withstand a real-world intrusion attempt. Too often, organizations that meet every documented requirement still find themselves compromised because there is a gap between written procedures and operational security.
The difference becomes apparent when we look at how controls are implemented in practice. Asset inventories may be carefully compiled for the purpose of compliance reporting, but by the time they are submitted new systems have been added, old ones decommissioned, and configurations changed. Incident response plans may exist in polished PDF form yet remain untested, meaning that when a genuine security event occurs the process falls apart under pressure. Multi-factor authentication might be rolled out internally. However, it may exclude external partners, third-party vendors, or privileged service accounts, exactly the points an attacker is likely to target.. Supply chain reviews often stop at questionnaires and policy documents without verifying how access is actually managed and monitored.
How Cybercriminals Exploit Weaknesses in NIS2 Environments
Attackers know how to exploit these blind spots. They look for forgotten service accounts with weak or no monitoring. Unused but still active administrator portals are another opportunity for exploitation. . They scan for cloud misconfigurations that leave sensitive resources exposed. Once inside they often avoid using custom malware entirely, instead relying on legitimate administrative tools to blend in with normal activity and avoid triggering detection. One of the most effective tactics is targeting a trusted third party with a weaker security posture and using that relationship as a bridge into the primary target’s network.
This is the reality of today’s threat landscape. Attackers move fast, think creatively, and exploit the smallest cracks in the armor. Compliance provides a framework and a level of accountability, but it does not replicate the persistence and adaptability of a determined adversary. Security begins where compliance leaves off.
Going Beyond NIS2: Building a Tested and Adaptive Security Culture
That means validating your defenses through realistic adversary-based testing. Red teaming is one of the most effective ways to do this. It simulates the tactics, techniques, and procedures of real attackers to reveal weaknesses in detection, response, and overall resilience. Purple teaming takes this a step further by having offensive and defensive teams collaborate in real time, turning every simulated attack into a learning opportunity for your security operations team. Regularly testing cloud environments, mapping and challenging vendor access, and running live crisis simulations all help uncover vulnerabilities that no audit checklist can expose.
NIS2 is a necessary and valuable framework. It sets the floor for what a responsible security program should look like. But defending against real attackers requires going beyond the baseline and building a security culture that is tested, adaptive, and threat informed.
Attackers are not interested in your compliance score. They are interested in your misconfigurations, your unmonitored endpoints, your unused but still active accounts, and the access rights of your weakest supplier. If your organization wants to see whether your NIS2 compliance translates into real-world resilience it is time to test it.
Seclinq specializes in helping organizations close the gap between compliance and true operational security. By simulating realistic attack scenarios, identifying blind spots, and guiding remediation efforts, we can show you where your security truly begins.