Spain ended its participation in Locked Shields 2026 on a positive outcome

•  The Spanish Blue Team has finished mid-table.

Spain has successfully concluded its participation in Locked Shields 2026, the largest annual real-time cyber defence exercise organised by the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence.

The Spanish Blue Team, comprising members of the Joint Cyber Command (MCCE) alongside personnel from the three armed forces, the National Police, the Guardia Civil, private sector companies and public bodies, finished with a score placing it in the mid-range.

In his words of appreciation to the participants, the commander of the MCCE, Vice-Admiral Javier Roca, highlighted the importance of Locked Shields as a prime venue for establishing relationships between cybersecurity experts, which can subsequently benefit the protection of cyberspace.

Over more than two days of competition, the exercise tested the teams’ ability to protect critical infrastructure (electricity grids, communication systems, military bases, banks, nuclear power stations, etc.) against thousands of simultaneous attacks in real time.

A training exercise in which the teams, in addition to develop their technological and IT skills, cooperated in developing legal responses and communication strategies in the face of a large-scale crisis. Furthermore, all of this was carried out at real-world speeds.

The main objective of Locked Shields is to strengthen international cooperative cyber defence. It has been held since 2010 and aims to foster collaboration between NATO nations and their partners to standardise response protocols to global threats.