GMV highlights shared governance as key to protecting smart ports

Ángel García-Madrid, GMV’s Resilience and Continuity Services Manager, took part in the 3rd Smart Ports Chair Conference at the Port of Castellón, where he examined the cybersecurity and resilience challenges facing the port ecosystem.

Held on November 5, the conference brought together more than 150 representatives of port authorities, companies, and institutions to take stock of the progress and challenges in the digital transformation of Spain’s port system. Under the banner “Smart Ports in Action: Building the Ports of the Future,” the event covered a range of topics, including digitalization, interoperability, cybersecurity, sustainability, and governance.

García-Madrid explained how the NIS2 and CER directives and the AI Act affect organizations responsible for protecting critical infrastructure such as ports and their areas of influence. Because port systems are hyperconnected and interdependent, the attack surface is larger and the impact of an incident can spread across the hinterland and along logistics chains.

“How do you protect them when the attack surface is enormous? The key lies in the smart port’s architecture: a hyperconnected, digitalized environment that links all the players, and a governance model that protects intelligence in a unified way. We need to define a defence architecture that lets us control information flows, segment and secure each domain, and keep operations running,” he said.

The Resilience and Continuity Services Manager at GMV’s Secure e-Solutions also stressed that protecting the ecosystem requires the involvement and coordination of all its members: “At GMV, we advocate a shared governance model—federal-style and collaborative—that involves every player in the sector, and we believe it’s time to stop thinking in isolation and start connecting, coordinating, and sharing.”

The event was organized by the Castellón Port Authority, Universitat Jaume I, and the PortCastelló Foundation, with support from Puertos del Estado.