Volution of european legal standards and mechanisms for information security governance in public authorities amidst digital transformations

This article analyses the key factors and major threats in information and cybersecurity at the global, European, and national levels. The article addresses the pressing need to enhance the information security system within Ukraine's public authorities amidst digital transformations and escalating global and national challenges. These challenges are exacerbated by the ongoing Russian military aggression and the imperative for Ukraine to fulfill its European integration commitments as an EU candidate country. The study underscores the significance of implementing European standards and mechanisms for information security governance as a prerequisite for effectively safeguarding information security in Ukraine's public authorities. The authors made a comprehensive analysis that examines the formation and evolution of EU legal standards and mechanisms for information security governance in the context of digital transformations. The analysis results delineate the EU's core policy directions in this domain, including 1) personal data protection; 2) network and information security; 3) strategic cybersecurity governance and legislative harmonization in cybersecurity. The trends in EU information policy, the key of them is the increasing role of cybersecurity within the information security framework, were identified. The article highlights the newest EU legal standards in information and cybersecurity, the implementation of which involves a suite of mechanisms designed to harmonize EU and member state legislation through directives, regulations, and strategic EU programs. These mechanisms include enhanced cooperation among member states, streamline diverse legal frameworks across EU institutions and bodies, implement measures for a high common level of cybersecurity across EU institutions, bodies, offices, and agencies, establish stringent unified standards for secure information exchange applicable to all EU institutions, bodies, and agencies, provide institutional support for EU policy in this area, set requirements for adherence to a minimum set of information and cybersecurity rules for all EU institutions and member state public authorities in physical and digital environments, fund cybersecurity research and innovation, and promote digital literacy among citizens and businesses, among other initiatives.