Weekly Cybersecurity Digest [December, Week 3]
Posted on December 23, 2025
Dear Valued Clients,
Welcome to this week’s cybersecurity digest from Make Sense, your trusted partner in building measurable resilience across Europe’s rapidly evolving digital and critical-infrastructure landscape. As December progresses, Europe is confronting an escalation of disruptive cyberattacks targeting public services, utilities, and essential systems. From postal networks and water utilities to coordinated hybrid campaigns, the week underscores a reality: cyber incidents now carry immediate societal and political consequences, not just technical impacts.
From service disruption to strategic attribution, resilience is increasingly defined by preparedness, coordination, and intelligence-led defence.
✅ Top Stories of the Week
i. Cyberattack Disrupts France’s Postal Service & Online Banking
A suspected cyberattack knocked out key online services of France’s national postal operator, La Poste, and its banking arm, La Banque Postale, ahead of Christmas, disrupting parcel tracking and online banking. Authorities reported no confirmed data loss but said services were inaccessible due to what’s believed to be a DDoS attack amid broader hybrid-threat concerns. [Read more via AP News]
ii. Denmark Officially Blames Russia for ‘Destructive’ Cyberattacks
Danish intelligence publicly attributed two major cyberattacks – including one on a water utility that caused pipes to burst and disrupted service – to Russia-linked threat actors such as Z-Pentest and NoName057(16). Officials called the hacks “destructive and disruptive” and part of Russia’s hybrid warfare strategy aimed at destabilising European infrastructure. [Read more via Euronews]
iii. Ransomware Compromises ~1,000 Systems at Romanian Water Agency
Romania’s national water management authority confirmed a ransomware attack that encrypted roughly 1,000 systems across multiple regions, disrupting administrative operations and water utility IT services. Local officials are analysing whether service continuity protocols need strengthening amid rising malware threats across Eastern Europe. [Read more via TheRegister]
Action prompt: When was the last time your operational-continuity plans were tested against ransomware scenarios affecting essential services?
✅ Industry Trends & Insights
QuoIntelligence Weekly Snapshot Reveals Active European Cyber Campaigns
A week-ending 17 Dec 2025 threat snapshot from QuoIntelligence highlights multiple active cyber campaigns affecting Europe, including OAuth grant abuse, SharePoint zero-day exploits deployed with Warlock ransomware, and Russian GRU-linked operations targeting energy and telecom infrastructure. These developments reflect dynamic threat activity in critical sectors and emphasise the need for advanced threat detection and response strategies across European organisations. [Read more via Quointelligence]
Reflect: Which of your identity, collaboration, or cloud platforms would adversaries likely target first for rapid access?
European Cybersecurity Agency Seeks Feedback on Software Supply Chain Security
On 20 December 2025, the EU-level cybersecurity agency ENISA issued a call for industry and stakeholder feedback on advancing software supply chain security across the bloc. The initiative aims to strengthen secure development practices and harmonise protections against increasingly complex threats targeting software dependencies and critical digital infrastructure. [Read more via ENISA]
Cybercriminal Tactics in 2025 Signal Evolving European Threat Landscape
A Cyble intelligence analysis released mid-Dec 2025 highlights how 2025 reshaped cybercriminal operations across Europe, with AI-driven ransomware, sophisticated phishing and supply-chain attacks rising. The report argues that the region faces a turning point as hybrid threats – from hacktivists to state-aligned actors converge, urging defenders to adopt intelligence-led, proactive defences into 2026. [Read more via Cyble]
✅ Regulatory & Policy Updates
European Commission Adopts Delegated Regulation Under Cyber Resilience Act
On 17 December 2025, the European Commission adopted a Delegated Regulation under the EU Cyber Resilience Act (CRA), clarifying when and how national CSIRTs may postpone sharing cybersecurity incident or vulnerability notifications on justified security grounds. This update refines live-incident reporting workflows, balancing rapid information exchange with protection of sensitive exploit details across EU networks. [Read more via Data Consilium]
European Parliament Report Highlights Software & Cyber Dependencies Across EU Markets
On 18 December 2025, the European Parliament’s Research Service published a detailed study on software and cyber dependencies in the EU economy. The report outlines how dominant non-EU software layers pose strategic vulnerabilities and recommends policy options to strengthen European digital autonomy, shaping future regulatory priorities across cybersecurity and digital industrial strategy. [Read more via European Parliament]
Consider: Which non-EU software dependencies represent the highest strategic or operational risk to your organisation?
✅ Cyber IQ Challenge + Proactive Security Hacks
Quick Quiz:
Which factor most strengthens resilience against disruptive cyberattacks on public and utility services?
A) Perimeter firewalls alone
B) Intelligence-led detection and tested continuity plans
C) Ad-hoc crisis communications
D) Annual compliance audits
(Answer below)
Smart Security Moves of the Week:
- Service-continuity testing: Run DDoS and ransomware tabletop exercises for public-facing and essential services.
- Utility-sector resilience: Segregate IT and OT environments while maintaining shared threat visibility.
- Supply-chain assurance: Strengthen dependency mapping and third-party risk validation.
- Hybrid-threat readiness: Align technical response with legal, regulatory, and public-affairs teams.
Answer: B) Intelligence-led detection and tested continuity plans
✅ Conclusion
From postal and banking disruptions in France to ransomware at water authorities and state-attributed attacks on utilities, this week illustrated how cyber threats increasingly intersect with daily life and national stability. Resilience today demands more than technical controls; it requires intelligence, coordination, and rehearsed response across sectors.
Final reflection: If essential services under your responsibility were disrupted tomorrow, how quickly could you restore operations while maintaining public trust?
At Make Sense, we transform intelligence into measurable defence – strengthening continuity, supply-chain assurance, and hybrid-threat readiness across Europe’s most critical systems.
Stay secure,
The Make Sense SRL Team & CyberTania
