ATHENA: A Federated Architecture for Cross-Border Cybersecurity Operations and Situational Awareness

This paper presents ATHENA (europeAn THreat intelligence, rEspoNse and prepAredness platform), a novel cross border federated cybersecurity platform developed to address the increasing need for coordinated, cross-border cyber threat intelligence sharing and incident response. We explore state-of-the-art threat intelligence platforms, automation tools, and collaborative training frameworks, positioning ATHENA as a federated, secure, and scalable architecture. Through a detailed architectural overview, the paper discusses the design and integration of ATHENA’s core components, including AI/ML-powered situational awareness, a distributed case and ticket management system, and a synchronized playbook and training repository. We highlight ATHENA’s compliance with EU regulations (GDPR, NIS2), its operational models, and its unique approach to collaboration across national Security Operation Centers (SOCs). Finally, we discuss technical challenges and future work, focusing on expanding interoperability and trust across diverse organizational and jurisdictional boundaries.