When Chinese manufacturers of smartwatches, Wi-Fi routers, or connected industrial sensors export to the EU post-2025, they face a new mandatory compliance requirement: EN 18031-1 general cybersecurity certification. Enterprises’ biggest confusion: "Is my product covered? What exactly do I need to do?" This is more than a simple product-test checklist—it’s the EU’s legal mandate for a minimum baseline cybersecurity protection framework for all internet-connected radio devices. Its broad scope and specific requirements are reshaping industry security design standards.
To understand EN 18031-1, move beyond viewing it as a test item—it derives authority from EU Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/30, amending the Radio Equipment Directive (RED) to add cybersecurity, privacy, and anti-fraud as mandatory market access requirements (on par with electrical safety and EMC).
EN 18031-1 is the harmonized standard adopted by the European Commission to meet RED’s basic cybersecurity requirements. Compliance with it legally presumes RED conformity—the most efficient, certain compliance pathway. Since August 1, 2025, it’s mandatory for all newly placed applicable products.
The standard’s core logic is risk-based security engineering: it forces enterprises to conduct systematic threat modeling from design inception—documenting and proving: "What cyberattacks could my product (e.g., a connected AC) face? What are the attack vectors? What harm could result?" This shift from passive testing to proactive defense design distinguishes it from all prior voluntary security certifications.
2. Scope of EN 18031-1 Certification
Applicability is clear and broad: all devices with wireless (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, cellular) public network access capability—regardless of end-user activation. The key is capability, not usage status.
No exceptions apply to these categories:
-Consumer electronics & smart home: smartphones, tablets, smart TVs, speakers, routers, cameras, smart appliances (refrigerators, ACs, washers), wearables.
-Office & network equipment: network printers, video conferencing systems, wireless access points.
-Industrial IoT: industrial routers, wireless sensors, connected PLCs, remote monitoring terminals.
-Automotive & transportation: in-vehicle infotainment, telematics units (cellular/Wi-Fi enabled).
Critical boundaries: Medical devices (MDR-regulated), aerospace, and custom military equipment follow sector-specific rules. However, a Wi-Fi-enabled tablet for hospital use (general consumer electronics) still falls under EN 18031-1.
3. Core Requirements for EN 18031-1 Certification
EN 18031-1 requirements form 13 "engineering modules" for network resilience, a defense-in-depth system not isolated test points:
-Software integrity & verification: Devices verify firmware integrity/authenticity to block tampered malicious code.
-Secure storage & communication: Sensitive data (keys, passwords, user data) encrypted at rest (AES-256) and in transit (TLS 1.2/1.3).
-Attack surface minimization: Disable unnecessary ports/services/functions; enforce least-privilege principles.
-Access control & strong authentication: No generic/weak defaults; enforce strong authentication and clear role-based permissions (admin, user).
-Secure reliable software updates: Support signed, encrypted, rollback-capable firmware updates with verifiable sources.
-Personal data protection: Privacy-by-design compliance with GDPR and other EU data laws.
-System resilience: Maintain core security or safely recover during cyberattacks (e.g., DDoS), failures, or abnormal inputs—avoid crashes or data leaks.
-Vulnerability management: Public vulnerability disclosure policies and timely updates for product useful life.
-Security event logging: Record critical events for audit and forensics.
-Cybersecurity information: Clear user guidelines for secure operation.
-Secure factory state: Pre-configured for security out-of-the-box.
-Secure development lifecycle: Integrate security into design and development.
-Documentation: All security measures and risk assessments must be documented.
EU regulations evolve dynamically—verify the latest status of (EU) 2022/30 and amendments via the Official Journal of the EU, and confirm exact EN 18031-1 versions via ETSI before key decisions. For professional certification consulting, contact BLUEASIA at +86 13534225140.
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