67% of EU governmental institutions score D or F for cybersecurity

The Business Digital Index (BDI), created by Cybernews, evaluated the cybersecurity postures of 75 European Union government institutions and found that 67% received a D or F rating — placing them in high-risk or critical-risk categories.

The BDI also revealed that every institution in the study had experienced at least one data breach. Email spoofing vulnerabilities were found across all C-rated institutions and in 96% of D- and F-rated ones.

In addition, 46% of F-rated institutions had suffered a recent breach, and 85% of employees in the lowest-rated organizations were reusing passwords that had already been exposed in previous leaks — a major red flag for security hygiene.

Key research takeaways:

  • The average cybersecurity score across EU governmental institutions was 71/100, classifying them as high-risk based on BDI methodology.
  • 67% of EU governmental institutions received a D or F score. 32% received a D score, and 35% received an F, while 33% were rated C. No institutions scored A or B.
  • All 75 evaluated institutions had experienced at least one data breach, and 46% of F-rated organizations had suffered recent data breaches.
  • 85% of employees in F-rated institutions reused breached passwords, while the figure stood at 71% for D-rated and 8% for C-rated organizations.
  • SSL/TLS configuration issues were present in 100% of F- and C-rated institutions, and 92% of D-rated ones — leaving systems open to data interception and man-in-the-middle attacks.
  • System hosting vulnerabilities affected 92% of D- and F-rated institutions and all C-rated ones, increasing the risk of unauthorized access.
  • 96% of D- and F-rated organizations had domains vulnerable to email spoofing, compared to 100% of C-rated institutions.
  • Exposed corporate credentials were found in 96% of F-rated and 83% of D-rated institutions, but only 12% of C-rated ones.

To read the full research, please click here.

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