Sopra Steria: When does a threat in orbit become an attack?
In a statement published on October 2, 2026 on its website, Sopra Steria presented, through the voice of Carolin Busch, Senior Defense and Space Director of the group in Germany, its analysis of the security challenges facing European orbital infrastructure. This statement revisits the issues addressed following the International Space Summit in Paris and sets out Sopra Steria's positioning with defense and security stakeholders, without announcing any new decision.
Civil or military, all space systems must be protected
For Carolin Busch, the real challenge is not to draw a boundary between civil and military uses of space, but to make all systems on either side resilient. She relies on a demonstration she witnessed last winter at a conference organized by the European Union: a robotic satellite capable of repairing or resupplying other satellites in orbit, originally designed for civilian purposes.
When asked about military use of this technology, a colonel present responded "Yes, of course", adding that such a system would also become a priority target for Europe's adversaries. According to the executive, a system designed for military use sees its security requirements evolve, which influences its design and leads to a cost increase.
The text also describes the sector's evolution: the gradual abandonment of the "bent pipe" principle (a geostationary satellite serving as a simple relay) in favor of networks of small satellites in low orbit connected by optical links, with data processing carried out directly on board. "If we look at Ukraine, civilian infrastructure is heavily targeted," Carolin Busch recalled, also mentioning two Russian satellites that maneuvered at an unusual proximity to European satellites.
Data sharing, the main barrier to collective defense
The executive believes that the space sector must engage in reflection on intervention thresholds comparable to existing collective defense mechanisms, such as NATO's Article 5: at what point should an incident in orbit be considered an attack? She links this debate to the IRIS² program, the future European constellation of secure satellites, currently in the acquisition phase.
Based on her experience, the main obstacle to cooperation lies less in technology than in data, with states hesitating to share sensitive information about threats. Federated learning, which allows models to be trained without data leaving national systems, is presented as a technical response, with political considerations remaining behind these possibilities.
Sopra Steria positions its contribution in strengthening this technological sovereignty. Through notably its German entity, the group indicates that it is supporting defense and security stakeholders, with the role of integrating secure infrastructure, trusted technologies and emerging innovations within reliable and large-scale operational solutions.
