NIS2 Compliance with Vectra AI

What is NIS2?

NIS2 (Network and Information Systems Directive 2) is the European Union’s updated cybersecurity framework aimed at strengthening the resilience of organizations operating essential or important services— such as healthcare, energy, finance, and transport. Building on the original NIS Directive from 2016, NIS2 introduces new obligations for risk management, incident reporting, and supply chain security to better protect critical infrastructure. By setting minimum standards, it ensures that vital services remain operational and safeguarded against ever- evolving cyber threats.

Why Does NIS2 Matter?

NIS2’s expanded scope now includes additional sectors, bringing the total to 18. This broader coverage means that more organizations—potentially even smaller ones with critical roles—must comply.

The directive also introduces stricter governance and accountability measures, requiring management bodies to approve and oversee cybersecurity policies and potentially holding them liable for major security failings.

Organizations subject to NIS2 must implement stronger risk management processes, incident handling procedures, and business continuity plans. This not only reduces cyber risks but also aligns security practices across the EU. Additionally, NIS2 drives coordination among Member States by establishing mechanisms such as the European Cyber Crises Liaison Organization Network (EU- CyCLONe).

Failure to comply can result in significant penalties and reputational damage, making early preparation and ongoing adherence essential.

Read our NIS2 Best Practices Guide for detailed best practices >

Market takeaways and key challenges

1. Breadth and depth of requirements: Many organizations find it difficult to stay aligned with the expanded demands of NIS2, which now applies to a broader array of sectors and services.
2. Complex hybrid environments: Managing security across on-premises data centers, cloud infrastructures, and external providers complicates consistent risk management and incident response.
3. Supply chain security: Article 21 explicitly highlights the need for robust supplier and third-party security. Vetting and monitoring these relationships can be resource- intensive and complex.
4. Continuous visibility and compliance tracking: Gaining a real-time view of potential threats, ensuring compliance, and maintaining detailed records for regulators can overwhelm security teams relying on outdated or siloed tools.
5. Heightened management accountability: With senior leadership now facing direct liability for cybersecurity shortcomings, boards require transparent reporting and governance frameworks to prove due diligence.
6. Disproportionate impact on medium sized businesses – high costs for lower revenue comparably
7. Disproportionate impact on multinational companies – Multiple frameworks (each member state) all with different requirements, Incident reporting variances
8. Disproportionate impact on sectors with lower cybersecurity maturity level

How Vectra AI Helps You Succeed Under NIS2

Based on the challenges outlined above, Vectra AI can help with NIS2 compliance by delivering a flexible, AI-driven platform that ensures real-time visibility, streamlined incident handling, and robust risk management—no matter your organization’s size or geographic presence. Through centralized threat detection and response, Vectra AI alleviates the compliance burden across diverse regulatory environments and varying levels of cybersecurity maturity.

1. Real-Time Threat Detection and Response

Vectra AI uses advanced behavioral analytics and machine learning to expose hidden threats across networks, cloud, SaaS, and identity infrastructures. Consolidated dashboards provide continuous visibility of security events, speeding up investigations and minimizing dwell time. This capability is especially valuable for medium-sized businesses and less mature sectors that lack extensive in-house security resources, ensuring threats are caught quickly—before they escalate.

2. Streamlined Incident Handling

Attack Signal Intelligence™ correlates multiple data points to flag the most critical risks, aligning with NIS2’s requirement for rapid incident detection and containment. Pre-built integrations (e.g., SIEM, SOAR, EDR) automate response steps, enabling faster recovery and thorough documentation of security incidents. For organizations juggling incident reporting rules across multiple jurisdictions, having automated and consistent workflows greatly reduces the complexity of classification variances.

3. Enhanced Governance & Accountability

Clear metrics and intuitive dashboards help board members fulfill their legal obligations under NIS2 (Article 20). The platform’s detection insights and recommended playbooks provide real-world scenarios for staff and leadership education. This approach is particularly beneficial for multinational companies whose senior leadership must comply with multiple frameworks. Vectra AI consolidates visibility and governance, ensuring consistent oversight and reporting.

4. Robust Risk Management, Including Supply Chain

Vectra AI offers visibility into third-party access and activities, addressing the directive’s focus on supply chain security (Articles 21 and 22). Detection models continuously refine themselves with updated threat data, ensuring you’re prepared for emerging and evolving risks. Sectors with lower cybersecurity maturity can leverage these continuous insights to strengthen defenses across critical third- party relationships and adhere to varied national requirements without overburdening existing security teams.

5. Proactive Compliance Reporting

Automated documentation simplifies the collection and sharing of evidence, helping organizations meet NIS2 incident- reporting obligations. Vectra AI references industry standards (e.g., MITRE ATT&CK) to streamline compliance mapping and illustrate how threats progress across the kill chain. By aligning with widely recognized frameworks, Vectra AI reduces confusion arising from differing Member State regulations and incident classification thresholds—making it easier for both medium-sized and multinational companies to maintain consistent reporting.

Download the Compliance Brief to see in detail how Vectra AI aligns with each NIS2 articles >