Advanced Cyber Defence Center (ACDC)

eco – The Association of the German Internet Industry, together with 28 partners from 14 European countries, has launched the Center for Advanced Computing Protection projectACDC – Advanced Cyber Defence Center) against one of the biggest threats to computer security – botnets. It is estimated that every fifth computer is currently part of a botnet, which cybercriminals use to infect end-user computers with malicious programs and access those computers remotely. In Frankfurt, the eco association began its work as coordinator of the Center for Advanced Computer Protection (ACDC – Advanced Cyber Defence Center), which is supported by the European Union. The project planned to offer a full range of services for enhanced computer security, from malware identification to prevention. Partners in the campaign included providers of large public networks, software manufacturers, scientific institutions, law enforcement and regulatory bodies, banks, and certification authorities.

The Croatian Academic and Research Network – CARNET was a full partner in this important pan-European project, which actively involved three departments within CARNET – the National CERT Department, the Service Development Department, and the Director's Office (Office for Administration and Management of Special Programs).

Cooperation in the European Union in the fight against botnet, as the primary platforms for attacks on public information systems, is a key activity in achieving a satisfactory level of internet security, and therefore CARNET became involved in this pan-European project at an early stage. CARNET's participation in this project has enabled a more effective fight against botnet in the Republic of Croatia, with the use of new knowledge and technologies at CARNET.

The Center for Advanced Computer Protection is an important component of the EU's computer security strategy and is the first initiative launched in the context of the EU's computer security strategy. This project has improved the protection of networks and systems from botnet and malware.

The Data Processing and Exchange Center played a central role in this pilot project,„central clearing house“), which received reports from project partners about security issues, such as spam campaigns on their networks, stolen data, denial-of-service attacks, and the like. Affected parties, such as end-users, mobile service providers, banks, security solution providers, or providers Hosting service, they are then informed about incidents and receive support via a central website www.botfree.eu or national help centers to remove malware. Help centers should provide the necessary tools, which can be downloaded online.

In addition, the Center for Advanced Computer Protection assisted in identifying infected websites and removing malicious software. Providers, who participated as partners in the project, also worked on detecting anomalies in their networks, so-called “botnet in the cloud” (“botnet in the cloud”) within mobile networks and reported them to the Data Processing and Exchange Center.

The pilot project had a total budget of 16 million euros and lasted 30 months. It is part of CIP-PSP funding, Contract number 325188.