Banks and credit institutions
ICT risk management, testing and third-party oversight are mandatory, and incident reporting is held to strict deadlines.
/ DORA
DORA Compliance
DORA is the EU's rulebook for digital operational resilience in financial services. We help you understand what it asks of you, find your gaps, and deliver the technical requirements, above all the testing, in practice.
[ 01 ] / WHAT IT IS
What is DORA, and what does it expect from financial entities?
In short
DORA (the Digital Operational Resilience Act, Regulation (EU) 2022/2554) governs the digital operational resilience of financial entities and their critical ICT providers. It covers five areas: ICT risk management, incident handling and reporting, regular resilience testing, third-party risk and information sharing. It has applied since 17 January 2025.
DORA aims to ensure that the financial sector can withstand disruption and attack affecting information and communication technology (ICT), and recover quickly when something does go wrong. It sets one set of rules across the EU, applies directly without national transposition, and is detailed by regulatory technical standards (RTS).
DORA rests on five pillars. ICT risk management expects governance and protection of the whole ICT environment. Incident management and reporting sets short, staged deadlines for major incidents. Digital operational resilience testing requires a regular testing program, including threat-led penetration testing (TLPT) for significant entities. Third-party risk management covers contractual and security handling of ICT providers, along with a register of information. Information sharing encourages voluntary exchange of threat intelligence.
DORA also puts responsibility on the management body, which must approve and oversee the ICT risk framework. For testing, the regulation lists example methods: vulnerability assessments and scans, network security assessments, source code reviews, scenario-based tests and penetration testing. This is not legal advice: your specific obligations need confirming with legal counsel and supervisory guidance.
Regulation and frameworks
- DORA (EU) 2022/2554
- RTS and ITS under DORA
- TLPT
- ISO/IEC 27001
- NIST CSF
- NIS2
[ 02 ] / WHO IT'S FOR
Who is covered by DORA?
The regulation applies to financial-sector firms and to the outside companies that provide them with critical ICT services.
Insurers and reinsurers
System resilience and the risk from outside providers (cloud, data processing and so on) fall within the regulation.
Investment firms and asset managers
The availability and security of trading and back-office systems is a core expectation.
Payment and e-money institutions, crypto-asset service providers
Service continuity and fraud protection make testing and incident handling especially important.
Critical ICT providers and suppliers
Their financial customers pass down contractual and security requirements, and some providers may fall under direct oversight.
Compliance and risk leaders
We help translate the legal text into concrete technical actions and evidence.
[ 03 ] / WHAT'S INCLUDED
What our DORA support includes
We tailor the work to your size, maturity and existing controls. On legal interpretation we work alongside your counsel, while we focus on technical and security delivery.
01
DORA gap analysis
We compare current practice with the regulation and the RTS and give you a prioritized implementation plan.
02
Technical support for the ICT risk framework
Technical review and improvement advice for asset inventory, access control, logging, backup and recovery, network protection and change management.
03
Incident classification and reporting
We help build the incident classification method and the staged (initial, intermediate, final) reporting process. See incident response.
04
Resilience testing program
An annual test plan using the methods DORA lists: vulnerability assessments, penetration testing, source code review and scenario-based tests.
05
TLPT preparation and testing
For significant entities, preparation for threat-led penetration testing and support on the testing side. See threat-led penetration testing.
06
Third-party risk management
Security assessment of ICT providers, definition of technical contractual requirements and support for the register of information.
07
Exit strategies and business continuity
Exit strategies for critical providers, recovery plans and testing them in practice.
08
Evidence collection and audit readiness
Preparing for supervisory inspections and internal audit: organizing documentation, logs and test reports.
[ 04 ] / HOW IT WORKS
How DORA readiness runs
The path runs from finding gaps through to testing and sustaining the program. Every step has a measurable output.
Scope and applicability
We establish which business units, systems and providers are in scope, and which functions are critical or important.
Gap analysis
We assess the current state against the DORA pillars and identify technical and process gaps.
Implementation plan
A prioritized roadmap with owners and deadlines, balancing business risk and regulatory obligation.
Technical implementation
We support improvements to access control, logging, backup, network protection and incident handling.
Testing program
We start regular testing: vulnerability assessments, penetration tests, scenario tests, and for significant entities TLPT preparation.
Evidence and sustainment
We organize the audit evidence and set the rhythm of continuous improvement and periodic review.
[ 05 ] / WHAT IT SOLVES
What DORA readiness solves, and why it pays off
DORA is more than a compliance exercise: the continuity of financial services and customer trust depend on it. Done well, compliance also improves real resilience, because technical controls and testing have to work in practice.
Preparation also reduces the risk of supervisory sanctions and unpleasant surprises in inspections, and simplifies relationships with financial customers for ICT providers that receive DORA requirements in their contracts.
- clear delivery of DORA's technical requirements
- a documented, regular testing program
- fast, compliant incident reporting
- better control of ICT third-party risk
- evidence ready for audit and supervisory review
What you receive
- DORA gap analysis report
- prioritized implementation plan
- annual resilience testing plan
- incident classification and reporting process description
- third-party security assessment reports
- evidence pack for supervisory and internal audits
[ 06 ] / WHY QYNTAR
Why work with Qyntar on DORA?
Because the technical side of DORA is best supported by people who know both the attacker's and the defender's side.
Testing experience
The people who meet DORA's testing requirements are the same people who deliver penetration tests, red teaming and source code reviews every day.
Practical delivery
We turn legal text into concrete, achievable technical actions rather than just producing policy documents.
The whole chain in one place
From gap analysis to TLPT, you work with one partner that also covers incident response and compliance support. See compliance support.
Evidence-centered work
At every step we make sure the output is evidence a supervisor and an auditor will accept.
[ 07 ] / FAQ
Frequently asked questions: DORA Compliance
What is DORA?
DORA (the Digital Operational Resilience Act) is Regulation (EU) 2022/2554, which sets uniform rules for the digital operational resilience of financial entities. It has applied since 17 January 2025.
Who does DORA apply to?
A wide range of financial-sector firms: banks, insurers, investment firms, payment and e-money institutions, crypto-asset service providers and others, plus the outside companies that provide them with critical ICT services. The regulation lists the entities in scope precisely.
How do DORA and NIS2 differ?
Both set cybersecurity expectations, but DORA is the more detailed, sector-specific rule for finance (lex specialis), whereas NIS2 is a general rule across many sectors. For financial entities DORA takes precedence. See NIS2 compliance.
What does DORA require for testing?
A risk-based, regular testing program (at least annually for systems supporting critical functions), and for significant entities, TLPT at least every three years. See threat-led penetration testing.
What are the deadlines for reporting incidents?
Major ICT incidents are reported in stages: an initial notification, then intermediate and final reports. The first notification deadline is measured in hours. The exact deadlines and content are set by the regulatory technical standards.
What is the register of information on third parties?
A financial entity must keep a register of its contractual arrangements with ICT providers and make it available to the supervisor on request. It is the foundation of third-party risk management.
Can you help if we only need to meet the testing requirements?
Yes. We can deliver the test program on its own: vulnerability assessment, penetration testing, source code review and TLPT.
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