Strengthening Spain's digital sovereignty: Red Hat Enterprise Linux achieves top-tier ENS security certification

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 9.0 Extended Update Support (EUS) has been included in the Catalogue of Information and Communication Technology Security Products and Services (CPSTIC) of the National Cryptologic Centre (CCN). This inclusion enables RHEL for deployment in public sector bodies operating under the strictest requirements of Spain's National Security Framework (ENS).

The ENS is the rigorous cybersecurity framework mandatory not only for all Spanish public administrations but also for the extensive network of private companies that provide them with services. It is a regulation aimed at driving the confidentiality, integrity, availability, authenticity, and traceability of digital data, information and services.

To achieve this certification, RHEL 9.0 EUS has demonstrated compliance with the security measures established by the ENS within its organizational, operational, and protection frameworks. These measures cover everything from policy and risk management to access control, communications protection, and system monitoring, applicable across basic, medium, and high levels.

Furthermore, as part of the ENS evaluation, RHEL includes specific OpenSCAP profiles. These profiles translate the complex ENS requirements into automatable security configurations, allowing servers to be deployed with an auditable configuration that maintains a strengthened security footprint from the outset. This capability not only drastically simplifies the process for administrations but also enables a solid foundation of cybersecurity by design, helping to minimize human error and facilitating continuous verification.

RHEL's inclusion in the CCN's CPSTIC catalogue complements the world’s leading enterprise platform’s already robust security profile, which holds the international Common Criteria (CC) certification, evaluating and certifying the security of technological products and systems, providing a solid framework to demonstrate that a product's security features have been consistently tested and verified.

Commitment to Digital Sovereignty

Red Hat Enterprise Linux's inclusion in the CPSTIC catalogue is a key element in achieving digital sovereignty, a priority strategy for both the European Union and its member states. Digital sovereignty projects effectively seek to protect critical infrastructures and digital assets in-country, thereby enabling greater operational autonomy.

To address this need for digital sovereignty, which the European Union is driving, Red Hat also offers Red Hat Confirmed Sovereign Support for the European Union, a service that delivers technical support exclusively by EU citizens, operating from within the EU. With this, Red Hat provides not only technological sovereignty but also operational sovereignty, verifying that the control and management of critical operations remain within European borders.

RHELs inclusion in the CPSTIC catalogue and Red Hat’s sovereign support offering are a testament to the company’s commitment to digital sovereignty. Red Hat offers an alternative based on open source transparency, capable of expanding customer choice to the solutions that best meet customer needs, and promoting collaboration with a robust ecosystem of local partners. This is the foundation that will allow Europe not only to maintain its present activities but also to lead the future of sovereign IT strategies.