In 2025, the National Cyber Security Index (NCSI) revealed one of the clearest, evidence-based snapshots of global cybersecurity readiness. We are living in two very different digital worlds. One world is building strong walls, intelligent defenses, and resilient digital societies. The other is racing forward while its digital ground crumbles beneath it.

A Tale of Two Extremes

The Cybersecurity Champion: Czechia

Imagine a nation treating cybersecurity as a decade-long mission. That's Czechia, leading the world with a near‑perfect score of 98.33/100, the strongest national cybersecurity posture recorded in 2025. It didn't react to threats; it built a system designed to outpace them. Czechia's strength comes from three pillars.

Organized Cybersecurity
  • Responsive and Ready: It built advanced incident‑response capabilities, including national CSIRTs and strong cybercrime enforcement units, allowing rapid detection and coordinated response.
  • Resilient at Its Core: Essential services are protected through crisis planning, continuous monitoring, and regular national and international drills.
  • Strategically Governed: With a Cyber Security Council, annual threat reports, and publicly documented policies, governance remains transparent and stable.

In September 2025, it approved the National Cyber Security Strategy (2026+), focusing on secure infrastructure, whole-society preparedness, and deeper cooperation with the EU, NATO, and global partners.

The Struggling Side: Where Cyber Defenses Barely Stand

At the other end of the index sits Palau, ranked 144th with a fragile score of 1.67/100. Nations such as Burundi, the Solomon Islands, and Haiti face a similar digital struggle.

None
  • No National Cybersecurity Strategy: With no formal laws or frameworks, many score zero across major pillars.
  • No Response Teams: Unlike Czechia's mature CSIRTs, some have no emergency response mechanisms at all.
  • Essential Services Unprotected: Critical services like energy and healthcare lack documented safeguards.
  • Dangerous Digital Growth Gaps: Palau's cybersecurity maturity trails its digital adoption, reflected in its –23.42 delta, a warning sign of escalating vulnerability.
  • Lack of Public Data: Because the NCSI requires publicly verifiable evidence, missing documentation leads to disproportionately low scores.

As we move through 2026, businesses face the same decision the world's nations face: build resilience like Czechia or drift like the nations where digital growth outpaces security.

Here are five ideas for organizations aiming to excel in cybersecurity this year:

  1. Make identity security solutions the foundation, as most attacks begin with compromised identities.
  2. Treat cybersecurity as a continuous investment, not a one-time project.
  3. Build strong detection and response capabilities, and breaches will happen.
  4. Strengthen critical infrastructure and third‑party ecosystems through vendor assessments, drills, and crisis simulations.
  5. Partner with a leading cybersecurity provider specializing in identity security solutions, TechDemocracy, that brings expertise, frameworks, and innovation.

TechDemocracy assists organizations in developing the same level of resilience that is observed in top-ranked nations. It doesn't just provide tools; it guides companies into becoming adaptive, evidence‑driven, and ready for whatever comes next.

As 2026 unfolds, the real question is simple: Do you want your organization to be prepared, resilient, and secure, or struggling to keep up?

TechDemocracy is the partner that helps you get there, strong, secure, and ready for the future. Contact us today!