Universities and research institutions manage valuable research data and intellectual property. Open networks and international collaboration make them vulnerable.
of educational institutions have insufficient cybersecurity budgets; universities are a growing target for nation-state espionage
Cybersecurity in education and research is about protecting research data, intellectual property and the data of students and staff, within networks that must stay open for collaboration. Research organisations are listed in NIS2 Annex II, implemented in the Netherlands through the Cyberbeveiligingswet (Cbw), and the GDPR applies to personal data. Knowledge security also plays a major role in international collaboration. The main threats are nation-state espionage targeting research data, ransomware on university networks, phishing aimed at students and staff and theft of intellectual property and patents. Universities, universities of applied sciences and research institutions therefore mainly hire CISOs for educational institutions, network security engineers who can secure open networks, privacy officers with an education background and SOC analysts and incident response specialists who detect and handle attacks quickly.
Nation-state espionage on research data
Ransomware on university networks
Phishing targeting students and staff
Theft of intellectual property and patents
CISOs for educational institutions
Network Security Engineers (open networks)
Privacy Officers with education background
SOC Analysts & Incident Response specialists
48u
Average time-to-shortlist
97%
Clients return
7.000+
Professionals in network
100%
Cybersecurity focus
Research organisations are listed in NIS2 Annex II, so universities and research institutions may fall under the Cyberbeveiligingswet (Cbw), the Dutch implementation of NIS2 that has applied since 15 August 2026. Each institution needs to check for itself whether it is in scope. Separately, the GDPR applies to student and staff data, and knowledge security needs attention in international collaboration.
A university mainly needs a CISO who sets policy for an environment with open networks and many collaboration partners. Network security engineers who can secure those open networks are also important, along with a privacy officer with education experience for the GDPR and SOC analysts and incident response specialists who detect and handle ransomware and phishing quickly.
MVPeople Group responds to every request within 4 hours and delivers introduction CVs for interim roles within 24 hours, often with a first profile within 4 hours. Candidates come from a network of more than 7,000 pre-screened cybersecurity professionals, including CISOs, privacy officers and incident response specialists. That helps during an acute incident or when a vacancy needs filling quickly.
Interim fits temporary situations, such as responding to a ransomware attack, a NIS2 gap analysis or bridging the gap after a CISO leaves. Permanent hiring fits structural roles in security management, privacy and monitoring. For institutions that want to develop talent, MVPrentice offers traineeships for young professionals. Permanent hiring through MVPermanent typically takes 2 to 4 weeks.
Last updated by Mathijs Visser, Co-founder and Lead Consultant MVPeople Group.
MVPeople Group places cybersecurity professionals across all NIS2 sectors.
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Join a leading research institution as interim Privacy Officer. You'll advise faculties on GDPR compliance, handle data protection incidents, and build privacy awareness across the organisation.
