The ‘Locked Shields 2026’ exercise concludes its familiarisation phase and is all set to begin

• Organised by Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence (CCDCOE), it is the largest annual real-time cyber defence exercise, in which international teams protect critical infrastructure against cyberattacks     

 ‘Locked Shields 26’ begins on 20^th of April, with the primary objective of strengthening international cooperative cyber defence through an extremely realistic cyber warfare scenario. The exercise emphasises that the physical and digital realms are now inseparable. The strategy is divided into three key domains: kinetic (physical), cyber (logical) and information (cognitive).

For a week, teams of technicians and experts have been preparing for the exercise, in which they will test the teams’ ability to protect critical infrastructure (electricity grids, communication systems, military bases, banks, nuclear power stations, etc.) against thousands of simultaneous attacks. It is a real-time training exercise in which teams must cooperate on both technical and legal fronts. It is not just about IT; the exercise requires countries to coordinate legal responses and communication strategies in the face of a large-scale crisis.

In this edition, the setting is a world divided into two operational blocs: the North Atlantic and the Pacific Region. The crisis arises following the discovery of oil and gas reserves to the south of the fictional country of Berylia. In response, Crimsonia (another fictional country) constructed artificial islands to expand its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), defying a UN ruling. Currently, in the third year of armed conflict, Crimsonia holds the Bakun-Roseiron Corridor, controlling critical logistics hubs such as airports and ports.

The strategic landscape is defined by two main axes. On the one hand, the defensive coalition led by Berylia and supported by Netoria and Selenoa through military and intelligence cooperation agreements. And on the other, we have the offensive axis led by Crimsonia and Nekelonia, employing a doctrine of hybrid expansionism and proxy mercenary groups such as Grizzly Strike and Dark Vortex.

Organised by the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence, it has been held since 2010 and aims to foster collaboration between NATO nations and their partners to standardise response protocols to global threats. Locked Shields is one of the most important annual cyber exercises held worldwide.