CaixaBank is taking part in a European consortium to define a framework for assessing and certifying cloud services

The EMERALD project forms part of the Horizon Europe programme

• The companies involved in this programme intend to provide tools to automate and unify the management of security controls for cloud services.
• The research project is funded by the European Commission, it will last for three years and will involve a total investment of 4.7 million euros.
• A total of 11 entities are involved in this working group, including CaixaBank and two other Spanish organisations: Tecnalia and OpenNebula Systems.

CaixaBank is taking part in a European consortium specialising in providing tools to automate and unify the management of security controls for cloud services. Through this project, the members of the consortium seek to define a homogeneous European framework for the ongoing assessment and certification of cloud services.

The research project, called EMERALD (Evidence Management for Continuous Certification as a Service in the Cloud), is funded by the European Commission under the Horizon Europe programme as part of GA 101120688 with an investment of 4.7 million euros and will last for three years. In total, it comprises of 11 entities (CaixaBank, Tecnalia, Fabasoft, Nixu, Fraunhofer, scch, Know Center, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, IONOS, Cloud Ferro and OpenNebula Systems), including three Spanish organisations: CaixaBank, Tecnalia —Europe’s leading research and technological development centre— and OpenNebula Systems —the provider of the open source cloud and edge computing platform, OpenNebula.

This consortium follows on from the EU-SEC (European Security Certification Framework) project, in which CaixaBank also participated, and the MEDINA project (Security framework to achieve a continuous audit-based certification in compliance with the EU-wide cloud security certification scheme), which is geared towards creating a European standard for certification in the cybersecurity of cloud services.

Cloud service providers and users must fulfil certain security controls, although the fragmentation of the market hinders the ongoing certification of European cloud services. EMERALD is endeavouring to improve the technological interoperability of current monitoring solutions and incorporate specific regulations, while developing intelligent tools and models to facilitate the application and implementation of cloud service certification by cutting complexity across the entire value chain.

CaixaBank’s primary role in the project is to lead on a use case for the ongoing certification of multi-cloud services, automating the process of collecting and reporting security controls.

European research projects

Besides this consortium, CaixaBank has been involved in other European projects within the framework of the Horizon 2020 programme, the European Commission’s research and innovation funding framework for the 2014–2020 period, which had a budget of almost 80 billion euros. Furthermore, the bank is involved in many projects under Horizon Europe, the current funding framework, which has 95.51 billion euros for the 2021–2027 period and seeks to ensure that Europe produces world-class science and breaks down barriers to innovation.

CaixaBank has been able to partake in upwards of ten winning consortia in recent years, and it has received funding of more than 3 million euros for technological innovation and cybersecurity.

CaixaBank’s participation in these projects establishes the company’s position as an actor involved in R&D for the financial sector, especially focusing on information security. Furthermore, being part of these international consortia provides the entity with greater coordination in the ongoing improvement of its cybersecurity environment and of the financial sector in general.

Cybersecurity, a strategic priority

Cybersecurity is a priority for CaixaBank, which has rolled out a cybersecurity ecosystem with specialist teams and advanced technology infrastructure to protect digital transactions from security incidents.

The bank invests continually in new technology in order to satisfy customer demands, guarantee their growth, adapt to emerging business needs, and provide access to information around the clock. As a result, it ensures a total adaptation of the infrastructure to the needs of financial management and services to customers. ​

CaixaBank is a pioneer in security research and coordination, with measures such as creating a specialised group for responding to IT security incidents, and a centre that coordinates the overall security of the whole Group. In addition, it is a member of the main cybersecurity research and collaboration international forums.