The European Union is preparing to launch a new, highly secure computer network to improve data sharing and protect against cyber threats among its institutions and member states. This network, called TESTA EIRIS for Enhanced Infrastructure for Reliable Interconnectivity and Security, is the latest version of a long-running project that began in 1996. The project has been upgraded multiple times over the years to keep up with technological advancements and growing security needs. Orange Business, the business-to-business arm of the French telecommunications company Orange, has been chosen to build and manage this new network. The TESTA EIRIS network will connect key European institutions such as the European Commission, the European Parliament, the Court of Justice of the EU, and the European Central Bank. It will also link public administration systems across member states, allowing for secure sharing of sensitive information and supporting cross-border collaboration. In France, several government ministries, including Justice, Interior, Health, and Finance, as well as the National Agency for Family Allowances (CNAF), currently use the existing TESTA network, according to an interactive map provided by the European Commission. Orange Business will provide advanced backbone services, which involve connecting distant locations and managing dynamic internet routing. The network will combine a central backbone with cloud connections and virtual private networks (VPNs) to link sites across Europe. The design will use a single backbone with at least 12 points of presence (PoPs) in five key European regions. This setup is intended to ensure a very high level of reliability, with an availability target of 99.999%, meaning the network would experience no more than about five minutes of downtime each year. The network will be monitored by a network operations center (NOC) and a security operations center (SOC), ensuring constant oversight and quick response to any issues. The project is part of the European Commission’s broader effort to modernize its digital infrastructure. According to Jan Opava, an IT service officer at the European Commission, the previous TESTA network was a single, centralized system managed by one service provider. With TESTA EIRIS, the Commission, through its Directorate-General for Digital Services (DG DIGIT), will take a more active role in managing the network, enabling faster responses to problems and greater control over its performance. This modular design is also considered a step toward digital sovereignty, allowing the EU to rely more on its own digital systems. The development of TESTA EIRIS is driven by the increasing use of digital tools and the growing complexity of cyber threats. Richard van Wageningen, director of Europe for Orange Business, said the EU has made digital trust a strategic priority, and this network aims to help build a secure digital environment within the Union. The infrastructure will use Orange’s Evolution Platform, which uses artificial intelligence to replace traditional physical equipment with virtual services managed by software. While the network will include at least twelve PoPs and have a high availability target, the contract details, including the cost, duration, and timeline for deployment, have not been disclosed.