ITC Secure and IronNet Unite to Form Collective Defence, a New Force in Critical Infrastructure Protection Against Hybrid Warfare

Collective Defence brings together world-class cybersecurity and AI capabilities to defend nations and enterprises against state-sponsored and hybrid threats targeting critical infrastructure.

Collective Defence today announces its formation following the combination of ITC Secure, a leading UK-based cybersecurity services firm and Microsoft Security Solutions Partner, and IronNet, a pioneer in collective defence and network detection technology. The company is headquartered in Luxembourg and operates from offices in the United States, United Kingdom, and Singapore.

Collective Defence addresses one of the most pressing security challenges of our time: the escalating threat of hybrid warfare targeting critical infrastructure. Across energy grids, telecommunications networks, financial systems, healthcare and satellite infrastructure, nation-states and their proxies are conducting persistent, sophisticated campaigns. This blurs the lines between cyber operations, disinformation, and physical disruption. Collective Defence brings together advanced technology, intelligence, and operational expertise to detect, deter, and defend against threats at scale.

A New Model for a New Threat Landscape

The combination of ITC Secure and IronNet brings together complementary cybersecurity solutions and AI to create a differentiated platform focused on the protection of critical infrastructure. ITC Secure contributes more than 30 years of experience delivering managed security services, SOC operations, and advisory support to governments and critical infrastructure operators globally. IronNet adds its groundbreaking collective defence and network detection technology, enabling real-time threat sharing and collaborative detection across organisations and national boundaries.

The combined company enables governments and critical infrastructure operators to share threat intelligence, coordinate defensive activity, and respond to hybrid threats in real time within a trusted, sovereign framework.

Luxembourg Headquarters and Global Presence

Collective Defence has established its global headquarters in Luxembourg. Luxembourg has recently announced an increased defence budget with a focus on cybersecurity. Luxembourg’s role within NATO and the European Union, combined with its regulatory and data protection framework, provides a strong base for sovereign cybersecurity and defence operations.

With teams in the United States, United Kingdom, and Singapore, Collective Defence maintains proximity to key government partners across the Five Eyes community, NATO, and the Indo-Pacific region, while delivering locally operated services supported by global threat intelligence.

Confronting Hybrid Warfare

State-sponsored cyber activity and hybrid threats targeting critical infrastructure continue to increase in scale and sophistication. Collective Defence addresses this challenge through a collective defence model that enables anonymized threat data to be shared across participants, allowing threats identified in one environment to inform defensive actions across others. This approach extends established defence and intelligence-sharing principles into the cyber domain.

Capabilities

Collective Defence offers an integrated suite of capabilities, including collective defence and threat sharing; managed detection and response through 24/7 security operations; advisory and consulting services for critical infrastructure operators; and hybrid threat intelligence focused on state-sponsored activity and emerging attack vectors. In partnership with Microsoft, Collective Defence is at the forefront of applying AI to cybersecurity operations, embedding advanced analytics and automation across its platforms. It has deployed Microsoft Security Copilot within its SOC, enhancing analyst productivity, accelerating incident investigation and response times, and delivering deeper, AI-driven insights to better protect clients against increasingly sophisticated threats.

Leadership

Collective Defence is led by an experienced management team with backgrounds across cybersecurity, defence, intelligence, and critical infrastructure protection. Further announcements regarding the leadership team and board of directors are expected in the coming weeks.

“The threats facing critical infrastructure today are not conventional cyber risks — they are acts of hybrid warfare waged by nation-states against the systems our societies depend on. Collective Defence was created to bring together the technology, talent, and partnerships needed to defend against these threats collectively, not in isolation. By combining ITC Secure’s deep expertise in protecting government and critical national infrastructure with IronNet’s pioneering collective defence technology, we have built something that neither company could achieve alone — a platform for allied nations and enterprises to stand together against the most sophisticated threats of our time.”

— Andre Pienaar, Chairman, Collective Defence

“Luxembourg is the ideal home for this mission; at the heart of Europe and at the crossroads of the alliances that matter most. From here, we are building a truly collective model of defence; combining locally delivered, sovereign security services with shared global threat intelligence. That means insights gained in one environment can rapidly strengthen the protection of others, creating a network effect that makes every participant more resilient.”

— Arno Robbertse, Chief Executive Officer, Collective Defence

“Hybrid warfare does not respect borders, sectors, or the traditional boundaries between military and civilian domains. The adversaries targeting our critical infrastructure are nation-states with the resources and patience to exploit every gap in our defences. Collective Defence represents a fundamentally new approach that mirrors how alliances have long operated in the physical domain and applies those principles to cybersecurity. I am honoured to chair the Advisory Council and to help shape a company that will play a vital role in the security architecture of the free world.”

— Edward Newberry, Chairman of the Advisory Council, Collective Defence

Disclaimer

This press release is provided for information purposes only and does not constitute, and should not be construed as, investment advice, a recommendation, an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities in Luxembourg, the United States or in any other jurisdiction. Any such offer or solicitation, if made, will be made only by means of confidential offering materials provided to qualified investors in accordance with applicable securities laws, and such offering materials will contain additional information, including risk factors, that is not set out in this press release. No person should make any investment decision on the basis of this press release.

This press release may include “forward‑looking statements” within the meaning of the U.S. federal securities laws, including statements regarding anticipated fundraising, strategy, plans, objectives and future performance. Forward‑looking statements are typically identified by words such as “may”, “will”, “expect”, “anticipate”, “estimate”, “intend”, “believe”, “project” and similar expressions, or their negatives. These statements are based on current expectations and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied. No assurance can be given that any anticipated transactions, fundraising or plans will be completed or achieved. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward‑looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release, and Collective Defence undertakes no obligation to update or revise them to reflect subsequent events or circumstances, except as required by law.

About Collective Defence

Collective Defence is a cybersecurity and national security company dedicated to protecting critical infrastructure from hybrid warfare. Formed through the combination of ITC Secure and IronNet, the company is headquartered in Luxembourg with operations in the United States, United Kingdom and Singapore. In strategic partnership with Microsoft, Collective Defence integrates advanced AI capabilities across its platforms and security operations. This collaboration strengthens collective defence, accelerates detection and response, and enhances the protection of allied digital ecosystems. Collective Defence provides collective threat sharing, managed detection and response, advisory services, and hybrid threat intelligence to governments, critical infrastructure operators and allied organisations worldwide. For more information, visit our websites: https://itcsecure.com/ and https://www.ironnet.com/

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