“We saw the news. We are aware of several recent cyber incidents in Portugal and we have been closely monitoring the situation, together with the Network of Computer Security Incident Response Teams [CSIRT]”, said an official source of the European Commission in a written response sent to Lusa.

Asked by Lusa about the consecutive cyberattacks on Portuguese entities, on Vodafone, the media groups Impresa and Cofina and the Germano de Sousa laboratories, the same source stresses: “We strongly condemn these cyberattacks, which are unacceptable”.

“We are also in contact with the Portuguese authorities to better understand its magnitude and impact”, they add, stressing that the European Commission is still “available to help in case of need”.

On Thursday, the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity (ENISA) had already told Lusa that it was “closely monitoring” the recent cyberattacks in Portugal and providing support to the Portuguese emergency response team member of the European network.

ENISA data sent to Lusa reveals that cyber incidents with a significant impact on critical sectors – such as the media – have increased by 72% in recent years, with a general upward trend in all areas.

“We are concerned about the growing number of malicious cyber activities at a global level, which is one of the top 15 threats against European citizens, according to ENISA”, admits the European Commission to Lusa.