Ayesa Digital provides technical assistance to INTA in a strategic cybersecurity project

Cyber OT focuses on technological developments in areas such as Logistics 4.0, mobility, and drone threat management.

It is one of the first tenders awarded under Cetedex, the defense sector’s new technology campus being built in Jaén.

Ayesa Digital is collaborating with the National Institute for Aerospace Technology (INTA) on a project to develop technologies in strategic sectors for security and defense. The public agency has awarded the company the technical assistance service for the Cyber OT project, one of the first contracts from the Technological Development and Experimentation Center (Cetedex) in Jaén.

The project, based at the La Marañosa Technological Institute in Madrid, focuses on cybersecurity for critical sectors such as Logistics 4.0, autonomous and connected mobility, and drone threat management. It will operate across both OT (Operational Technology) and IT (Information Technology) networks, and Ayesa is one of the few cybersecurity service providers specialized in both technological domains.

The company will be responsible for providing technical assistance for the various developments planned under the Cyber OT project. Specifically, the initiative includes the creation of a pattern recognition system for detecting attacks in OT/IT networks, using machine learning techniques. A tool for network recognition, vulnerability analysis, and profiling of OT environments will also be developed.

Additionally, the project foresees the creation of an AI-guided automatic security auditing system, adaptable to cyberattacks on IT/OT networks, as well as a study on cryptographic vulnerabilities in commonly used IoT protocols, alongside the compilation of methods and tools for identification and attack.

Finally, the project includes the development of a Cyber Range platform to simulate OT/IT network environments, enabling security testing, training, and capacity building for technical personnel.

Disruptive technologies

Cyber OT will leverage disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, Big Data, and advanced analytics. It will also implement programming languages, Large Language Models (LLMs), and container technologies such as Kubernetes and Docker. The project also emphasizes pentesting (penetration testing) — the simulation of an attack on software or hardware systems to identify vulnerabilities and prevent external threats.

According to Miguel Ángel Fernández, Director of Digital Administration at Ayesa, “this project consolidates our position as a technological partner of INTA; it strengthens and expands our credentials and expertise in cybersecurity within the General State Administration and allows us to develop and acquire knowledge in cybersecurity across strategic sectors of the defense domain”.

Cyber OT will be developed within the framework of the Technological Development and Experimentation Center (Cetedex), under the auspices of INTA, currently under construction in Jaén. With a budget of €222 million, the center is set to become a hub of excellence in the research of key defense technologies, serving as a catalyst for technological development and a driver of dual-use capabilities. Its mission also includes facilitating knowledge and technology transfer between the Ministry of Defense, universities, companies, and research and technology centers.