7 ways BifrostConnect can support Your NIS2 compliance

The NIS2 Directive is set to redefine cybersecurity requirements across the EU, enforcing stricter risk management, access control, and resilience measures for organizations operating critical infrastructure. Ensuring compliance can be a complex challenge—especially when it comes to securing remote access to Operational Technology (OT) and IT systems.

BifrostConnect offers a hardware-based, session-specific remote access solution that strengthens security, mitigates cyber risks, and aligns with NIS2’s stringent requirements:

1. Securing Remote Access for Critical Infrastructure:

Under NIS2, organizations must adopt stronger cybersecurity measures to protect essential services from cyber threats. Traditional remote access solutions, such as VPNs and persistent connections, expose systems to lateral movement and ransomware risks.

BifrostConnect provides a session-based, air-gapped connection, ensuring secure remote access without exposing networks or increasing the attack surface. This makes it an ideal solution for securing OT environments where continuous connectivity is a vulnerability rather than a benefit.

2. Reducing Third-Party Access Risks

One of NIS2’s major focuses is on supply chain security—ensuring third-party vendors and service providers do not introduce cyber risks. Many cyber incidents stem from compromised remote access tools or weak third-party security practices.

BifrostConnect addresses this by offering a Just-in-Time (JIT), non-persistent connection that does not require external users to be permanently integrated into the network. This eliminates the risks associated with VPN credentials, agent-based solutions, and always-on remote access tools.

3. Mitigating Supply Chain Cybersecurity Threats

With supply chain vulnerabilities on the rise, NIS2 requires organizations to manage risks associated with external providers. BifrostConnect prevents the most common supply chain-related attack vectors by:

• • Removing the need for permanent VPN tunnels or agent-based software.
  • Ensuring that third-party access is only granted for the necessary duration.
  • Providing a hardware-enforced, session-specific connection that does not allow lateral movement within the network.

4. Strengthening Incident Response & Resilience

A key aspect of NIS2 is ensuring organizations have robust incident response and business continuity plans. Cyberattacks can cripple remote access solutions, making it impossible to intervene when critical systems are compromised.

BifrostConnect enables organizations to maintain remote access even when networks are down or segmented, allowing for faster troubleshooting and recovery in emergency situations. By ensuring air-gapped access to critical infrastructure, it supports compliance with NIS2’s resilience and operational continuity mandates.

5. Enforcing Stronger Access Controls and Authentication

NIS2 mandates multi-factor authentication (MFA), strict access controls, and comprehensive logging for all remote access activities. BifrostConnect is built with security-first principles, enforcing:

• • MFA to prevent unauthorized access.
  • Time-limited, session-based access control instead of persistent network integration.

6. Ensuring Compliance with Audit and Monitoring Requirements

To meet NIS2’s security governance requirements, organizations must monitor and log remote access sessions for auditing and forensic purposes. BifrostConnect provides detailed access logs, offering visibility into who accessed what, when, and why—ensuring organizations meet their compliance obligations.

7. Reducing the Attack Surface for OT Security

OT systems were not designed with cybersecurity in mind, making them a high-value target for cybercriminals. NIS2 calls for heightened security in OT environments, but traditional IT security tools often fail to meet OT requirements.

BifrostConnect bridges this gap by providing secure, hardware-isolated access that does not introduce additional vulnerabilities. Unlike traditional remote access solutions, it:

• • Does not require network-based integration, minimizing exposure.
  • Prevents persistent remote access, reducing the risk of unauthorized access.
  • Works even in air-gapped environments, ensuring full operational security.

NIS2 compliance is a growing concern for organizations operating critical infrastructure. By eliminating persistent remote access risks, securing third-party access, and enhancing incident response, BifrostConnect directly aligns with NIS2’s cybersecurity mandates. Organizations looking to strengthen their cybersecurity posture under NIS2 should consider BifrostConnect as a key component of their secure remote access strategy—protecting IT and OT environments while ensuring full regulatory compliance.