THE POLITICAL FALLOUT OF the Russian invasion of Ukraine is prompting the European Union (EU) to radically upgrade the security of its facilities, according to a series of internal memoranda.
On July 14, the EUObserver, an EU-focused news agency based in Brussels,
said
it had seen an internal EU document that describes the creation of a
new anti-surveillance unit. The unit’s mission will reportedly center on
providing security for closed-door EU meetings, using counter-measures
standards employed by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
According to EUObserver, EU member states
have agreed to establish a so-called “CSC-TSCM Expert Group,” which
will spearhead the formation of this new unit. In security parlance,
TSCM stands for technical security counter-measures, a method of
counter-surveillance. In their most basic form, TSCM operations are
carried out by teams of technical experts trained in the use of
anti-bugging equipment. These are able to detect radio emissions, which
are generated by most surveillance devices —commonly referred to as
‘bugs’.
The internal memorandum stipulates that
the “CSC-TSCM Expert Group” will be officially set up after July 25. It
will consist of experts from several EU states. The resulting unit’s
mission will be to “prevent, detect and potentially neutralise
eavesdropping of information in any physical or electronic form,” the
memorandum states. Counter-measures operations will include regular
inspections of “facilities and vehicles and the protection of classified
meetings” in buildings that house the EU Council, EU Parliament, and
the European Commission.
The forthcoming formation of the “CSC-TSCM Expert Group” appears to be closely linked to news, published
earlier this month, relating to the construction of a new facility. The
new facility is described in the media as an EU “secure bunker.”
According to the EUObserver, the €8 million ($8.07 million) enclosed
space will operate as a designated EU sensitive compartmented
information facility (SCIF). The term denotes a secure area within a
larger building, which is used to discuss sensitive topics and process
classified information.
An internal memorandum, which EUObserver
said it had seen, describes the project as a dedicated facility that
will operate within the premises of the EU Council in Brussels. It will
be designed to accommodate around 100 people, including technical and
other facilities staff, such as interpreters. Audiovisual systems and
devices in the SCIF will be disconnected form the World Wide Web, while
NATO-certified insulation technology will prevent electromagnetic and
radio waves generated by audiovisual and other hardware from being
remotely intercepted.
Additionally, users of this secure
facility will need to have at least SECRET UE/EU SECRET-level clearance.
That is the second-highest level of clearance issued by the EU under
its Protection of European Union classified information (EUCI) system.
As is common in SCIF-type spaces, users will be required to leave all
electronic equipment, such as smartphones, smartwatches, electronic key
fobs, or laptop computers, in specially designated storage facilities
located outside the SCIF. Furthermore, the facility will be swept by
TSCM teams “before and after the meetings to detect, locate and
neutralize any eavesdropping device”, the memo said.
According to EUObserver, the EU SCIF facility is scheduled to be operational by 2024.
