NIS2 and DORA compliance guide: Securing European businesses through automated IT governance
European businesses face a compliance challenge
European businesses must balance technological innovation with strict regulatory compliance. The EU has introduced NIS2 (Network and Information Systems Directive) and DORA (Digital Operational Resilience Act) to enhance cybersecurity and operational resilience across sectors critical to the economy. These frameworks protect sensitive data, maintain business continuity, and build trust. But their complex requirements create significant challenges for organizations across Europe's energy, healthcare, finance, and critical infrastructure sectors.
What you need to know about NIS2 and DORA
NIS2: Cybersecurity for critical sectors
NIS2 requires critical sectors—energy, healthcare, finance, transport, and public administration—to implement stricter security measures, manage risks effectively, and report cyber incidents within 24 hours.
Key NIS2 requirements
- Stricter security measures for critical and essential entities
- C-level executive accountability for cybersecurity
- Penalties up to 2% of global revenue for non-compliance
- Potential bans on executive leadership roles
- Mandatory incident reporting within 24 hours (initial) and 72 hours (detailed)
Organizations covered by NIS2 must implement systems that ensure both security and compliance across their IT infrastructure.
Key DORA requirements
- ICT risk management frameworks
- Incident reporting and classification procedures
- Digital operational resilience testing (including threat-led penetration testing)
- Third-party ICT service provider management
- Information sharing arrangements
These measures are essential, but they create significant operational burden for European financial services facing increasing cyberattacks.
IT teams face mounting pressure
These regulations arrive when IT teams are already stretched thin. European organizations must:
Manage identity and access governance across hybrid environments spanning cloud and on-premises systems
Assess and mitigate compliance risks in real-time across all critical assets
Maintain complete visibility into IT infrastructure to detect vulnerabilities and prevent breaches
Navigate complex vendor ecosystems and monitor third-party risks continuously
Implement encryption, access control, and asset management to protect sensitive data and meet GDPR requirements
Failure to address these challenges results in more than regulatory fines—it damages reputations, disrupts operations, and erodes customer trust. For European businesses, compliance with NIS2 and DORA is essential to staying competitive in markets that prioritize digital trust and data sovereignty.
You need a unified approach to compliance
To meet NIS2 and DORA requirements, you need more than patchwork solutions. You need an IT strategy tailored to the European regulatory landscape—one that integrates identity governance, compliance management, and endpoint protection. Matrix42 helps you meet today's challenges while building a secure and compliant foundation for the future.
Identity governance and administration: Lower risk and ensure compliance
Many European organizations rely on manual methods to manage user identities and access rights—email-based access requests, spreadsheet tracking, and inconsistent provisioning processes. These approaches are time-consuming, error-prone, and create security risks including:
Zombie accounts
Active accounts for ex-employees increase unauthorized access risk
Toxic privilege combinations
Overlapping access rights violate separation-of-duties policies
Regulatory non-compliance
NIS2 and DORA demand tighter access control and governance
As hybrid environments become standard, organizations face mounting complexity managing identity and access governance across cloud-based and on-premises systems.
Why automated IGA matters for compliance?
Automated Identity Governance and Administration (IGA) transforms identity and access management by streamlining processes and ensuring compliance with European regulatory frameworks. Unlike traditional Identity and Access Management (IAM), IGA focuses on governance—automating access policies, recertifications, and audits across your organization.
With automated tools, you can manage identity and access governance across hybrid environments, ensuring consistent and secure operations regardless of system diversity.
IGA helps you meet regulatory requirements
NIS2 and DORA introduce strict requirements for organizational compliance. Here's how Matrix42's IGA solution helps you meet these regulatory standards:
Strengthened access controls and security measures (NIS2 Article 21)
IGA improves identity lifecycle management and prevents unauthorized access. It enforces access control policies consistently, managing who has access to what resources based on role and responsibility—meeting NIS2's requirement for security measures.
Incident response and reporting (NIS2 Article 23, DORA Article 17)
IGA tracks and manages identities of individuals who have compromised systems. By tracking identity actions, administrators can detect breaches quickly and lock out compromised identities, supporting rapid incident response required under both regulations.
Auditing and compliance reporting (DORA Article 6)
IGA continually monitors the integrity of data and accuracy of implemented identity lifecycle processes. Identity governance reporting assures auditors of policy enforcement, meeting DORA's documentation requirements for ICT risk management frameworks.
Data protection and GDPR alignment
IGA ensures access to personal data is managed properly, supporting both NIS2 security measures and DORA's data protection requirements while maintaining GDPR compliance.
Matrix42 IGA automates key compliance workflows essential for NIS2 and DORA
- Automated deprovisioning: Prevents zombie accounts by ensuring timely offboarding when employees leave
- Access rights recertification: Periodic reviews eliminate excessive or inappropriate access
- Audit readiness: Maintains clear records of access for compliance reporting and regulatory audits
- Policy-based provisioning: Ensures consistent access controls across hybrid environments
Learn more about Matrix42 Identity Governance and Administration
Risk management: Proactive compliance and resilience
The challenge: Managing risks across complex IT environments
NIS2 and DORA demand continuous risk assessment, third-party monitoring, and proactive threat management. Traditional risk management approaches—spreadsheets, siloed tools, and reactive processes—leave organizations exposed to:
- Unidentified vulnerabilities: Lack of visibility into emerging threats
- Third-party risks: Insufficient oversight of ICT service providers
- Compliance gaps: Inability to demonstrate adherence to regulatory requirements
- Audit failures: Inadequate documentation of risk assessments and controls
Organizations need a centralized, automated approach to identify, assess, and mitigate risks across their IT infrastructure.
Matrix42 Risk Management provides a centralized platform to manage compliance risks, third-party threats, and operational resilience requirements under NIS2 and DORA.
Risk management supports compliance
1. Comprehensive risk assessment
- Identify and evaluate risks across IT infrastructure
- Map risks to NIS2 and DORA requirements
- Prioritize threats based on impact and likelihood
- Document risk assessments for regulatory audits
2. Third-party risk management
- Monitor ICT service provider risks continuously
- Ensure contracts include resilience and security clauses
- Track compliance of third-party vendors
- Maintain oversight required by NIS2 Article 21 and DORA Article 28
3. Enhanced visibility and proactive controls
- Maintain a single risk register across business units and geographies
- Gain real-time insights into emerging risks and threats
- Prioritize threats based on impact and likelihood
- Enforce controls to prevent disruptions before they occur
4. Accelerated compliance readiness
- Simplify adherence to standards like ISO 27001 and ISO 27005
- Strengthen operational processes to ensure ICT resilience
- Prepare for regulatory audits with documented risk assessments
- Demonstrate compliance to regulators and stakeholders
How to achieve NIS2 compliance
Incident management (Article 23)
Documented procedures for detecting and responding to incidents within required timeframes (24/72 hours)
Business continuity (Article 21)
Ensure recovery and crisis management plans are in place and tested regularly
Supply chain security (Article 21)
Monitor and manage risks from direct suppliers and service providers
Physical and cybersecurity (Article 21)
Establish policies for infrastructure and personnel security
How to achieve DORA compliance
Information security (Article 8)
Support implementation of policies to protect data confidentiality and system integrity
Access control (Article 8)
Assist with enforcement of strong authentication mechanisms and privileged access management
Change and patch management (Article 8):
Manage ICT updates and mitigate vulnerabilities through systematic processes
Contract management (Article 28)
Ensure ICT supplier contracts include resilience and security clauses as mandated
Adopt Integrated risk management with Matrix42
- Identity Governance & Administration (IGA): Protect sensitive access rights to minimize breaches and unauthorized access
- Incident Management: Respond to incidents and link them to associated risks for comprehensive tracking
- Service Management: Align risk with operational processes for end-to-end control and visibility
Stay agile with Cloud Your Way. Deploy Matrix42 to public cloud, privace cloud, or on-premise, which flexibility to adapt as your IT strategy evolves.
Compliant, secure, and prepared with Matrix42
Meeting NIS2 and DORA requirements demands solutions that ensure compliance, enhance security, and simplify governance. Matrix42's portfolio of IGA, Risk Management, and Endpoint Data Protection solutions provides European organizations with:
- Automated identity governance and access controls that ensure only authorized personnel can access critical systems and data, meeting NIS2 Article 21 and DORA Article 8 requirements
- Real-time risk assessment and management capabilities that help you identify, evaluate, and mitigate potential threats before they impact operations
- Endpoint protection that safeguards sensitive data and helps maintain the integrity of digital assets while supporting GDPR compliance
By partnering with Matrix42, you're investing in a security infrastructure that evolves with European regulatory requirements while delivering operational benefits.
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About Matrix42
For over 20 years, Matrix42 has been at the forefront of developing and optimizing service management solutions based on customer needs. We offer one agile SaaS platform that is easy to integrate, quick to deploy and scales for all your service management needs.
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