The CIRCAT Project launches its 1st Open Call to Strengthen the Cybersecurity of Europe’s Critical Infrastructures

CIRCAT is a Digital Europe project coordinated by the National Cybersecurity Authority of Greece, which started in January 2026. The project delivers a solution based on cutting-edge AI-enhanced tools and processes to support organisations, particularly large industrial installations and critical infrastructures, in strengthening their protection, preparedness, and resilience against cyber threats.

The project has launched its 1st Open Call, inviting organisations with cybersecurity expertise to contribute to enhancing the resilience and protection of Europe’s critical infrastructures. Through this first Open Call, selected organisations will develop realistic penetration testing and cyber risk scenarios for key sectors, including Energy, Health, Public Administration, Digital Infrastructure, ICT Service Management (B2B), and Financial Market Infrastructures. These scenarios will support security teams in training, testing, and preparing against real cyber threat patterns across Networks, Applications, Virtualisation, Cloud, Industrial Control Systems, and IoT environments.

Up to 18 selected projects will receive expert support through a six-month programme and may receive up to €40,000 in funding.

Who can apply?

Proposals can be submitted by National Cybersecurity Authorities, National Coordination Centres, Operators of Essential Services, large industrial installations, governmental entities, and other stakeholders with the capacity to aggregate demand.

Eligible applicants include SMEs, mid-caps, large companies, research centres, universities, and public bodies established in and controlled by entities or persons located in a Member State of the European Union or the European Economic Area.

The deadline for applications is 9 July 2026 at 15:00 CEST.

Interested organisations can learn more and apply through the official Open Call page: https://circat.eu/open-calls/open-call-1/