Cooperation for greater cybersecurity in Germany

• Volkswagen, Allianz, BASF and Bayer aim to establish “DCSO Deutsche Cyber-Sicherheitsorganisation GmbH”
• Collaboration with Federal Ministry of the Interior (BMI) and Federal Office for Information Security (BSI)
• DCSO to function as competence center for German industry

September 18, 2015 – Industry and policymakers are planning closer cooperation in the future in order to improve cybersecurity. To this end, Volkswagen, Allianz, BASF and Bayer intend to establish the “DCSO Deutsche Cyber-Sicherheitsorganisation GmbH” (German Cybersecurity Organization). This competence center is to operate as the preferred cybersecurity service provider for companies in Germany.

IT managers at the founding companies are convinced that “secure cyber systems are a basic prerequisite for business success. However, in light of the growing number of cyber attacks on corporate systems, businesses must cooperate more closely with one another and with government organizations. That is why establishing DCSO is an important step in jointly fostering cybersecurity in Germany.”

DCSO will collaborate with the Federal Ministry of the Interior (BMI) and the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI). It will accumulate specialist knowledge on cybersecurity. It is hoped that the closer exchange of information will help compile an anonymized status report on national cybersecurity.

At the same time, the organization will support companies active in Germany in improving their security architecture. DCSO will offer these companies high-quality services to identify cyber risks and repel cyber attacks. Such measures include an early-warning system and security audits to review corporate information security. The first services will be rolled out in 2016. DCSO then plans to develop new security technologies with cooperation partners.

DCSO welcomes further partners. Businesses and industry associations can jointly develop the services offered by DCSO in the organization’s specialist council, which will also function as a joint forum for cybersecurity in Germany.

The registered office of DCSO will be located in Berlin and the organization will operate as a financially independent limited liability company. Volkswagen AG, Allianz SE, BASF SE and Bayer AG are putting up the share capital and the seed capital. Once antitrust approval has been obtained, each will hold a 25 percent stake in DCSO. Profits are to be reinvested in research and development and in strategic projects.

Volkswagen
Lasse Osteneck
Phone: +49 (0) 5361 / 9-42172
E-mail: lasse.osteneck@volkswagen.de
www.volkswagen-media-services.com

Allianz
Petra Krüll
Phone: +49 (0) 89 / 3800-2628
E-mail: petra.kruell@allianz.com

BASF
Jennifer Moore-Braun
Phone: +49 (0) 621 / 60-99123
E-mail: jennifer.moore-braun@basf.com

Bayer
Florian Schwalbach
Phone: +49 (0) 214 / 30-21241
E-mail: florian.schwalbach@bayer.com

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