EuroWire, BRUSSELS: The European Union has stepped up efforts to protect its space infrastructure as satellite interference, cyber risks and orbital congestion move higher on the bloc’s security agenda. The push combines a proposed EU Space Act with operational measures on traffic monitoring, signal authentication and secure communications, extending a broader security drive set out in the EU Space Strategy for Security and Defence. The measures cover services that support navigation, transport, government communications and other critical civilian and public functions.
The European Commission proposed the EU Space Act in June 2025 as the bloc’s first harmonised framework for space activities. The draft sets out rules on safety, resilience and sustainability, including requirements for tracking space objects, limiting debris, safely disposing of satellites at the end of their missions, managing cybersecurity risks and reporting incidents. It also introduces environmental assessment obligations and would apply not only to EU operators but also to non-EU companies providing space services in the European market.
Commission data show the regulatory push comes as pressure in orbit grows sharply. More than 11,000 satellites are already in space, with up to 50,000 more expected over the next decade, while more than 128 million pieces of debris are circulating in orbit. EU institutions say the rising density increases collision risks and raises the stakes for systems that underpin navigation, timing, communications and earth observation. The draft law remains under review by the European Parliament and EU member states.
EU tightens orbital safety rules
Alongside the legislative push, the Union has expanded operational monitoring through its Space Surveillance and Tracking network. The EU SST system uses ground-based sensors to assess collision risks, analyse breakups and monitor uncontrolled re-entries, with the European Union Agency for the Space Programme acting as the front desk for users. Official programme data show more than 300 organisations now receive these services and more than 600 satellites are being safeguarded, making traffic management a central part of the EU’s security posture.
The EU has also moved to harden navigation signals against spoofing. Galileo’s Open Service Navigation Message Authentication became operational in July 2025, allowing compatible receivers to verify that a signal genuinely comes from the European system and has not been falsified. The authentication layer was introduced as false-signal incidents became more prominent in parts of Europe and nearby regions, affecting sectors such as civil aviation, maritime activity, road transport and drones that rely on trustworthy positioning data.
Signals and service continuity
The pressure on satellite services has been increasingly visible in aviation. In June 2025, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency and the International Air Transport Association published a joint mitigation plan after reporting a continued rise in jamming and spoofing incidents across Eastern Europe and the Middle East. Their response called for stronger information gathering, prevention measures, better use of infrastructure and airspace management, and closer coordination among agencies as interference becomes more frequent and more complex.
Europe’s wider response also includes secure-connectivity and industry coordination tools. The Commission signed the concession contract for the IRIS² system in December 2024, covering a 290-satellite multi-orbit constellation designed for secure communications, while the EU Space ISAC held its first general meeting in 2025 to deepen information sharing across the sector. Together, those steps show the Union tying regulation, monitoring, signal protection and secure infrastructure into a single space security framework as orbital risks continue to mount.