Christian Cévaër takes the helm of France Cyber Maritime, succeeding Xavier Rebour, who has led the organization since its inception. The leadership transition will occur the day after the Maritime Economy Summit 2025.
Created in November 2020, the association’s mission is to help the maritime and port sector strengthen its cybersecurity. With more than ninety members, it brings together maritime and port operators, providers of cybersecurity solutions, as well as public sector actors and coastal territorial authorities in metropolitan France and overseas territories.
The association advocates for the development of tailored cybersecurity solutions and operates the M-CERT (Maritime Computer Emergency Response Team), which alerts sector operators to threats and vulnerabilities and offers assistance to victims of cyberattacks.
Over 600 cybersecurity incidents in 2024
In 2024, the M-CERT logged more than 600 cybersecurity incidents affecting the global maritime and port sector, a figure already reached in the first ten months of 2025. The majority of attacks are attributed to hacktivists driven by geopolitical motives, while cybercrime remains high, with substantial financial impacts. Port activities, industry, transport, and maritime administrations are among the sectors most affected.
After five years under the leadership of Xavier Rebour, a former naval officer specializing in safety and maritime security, the association will now benefit from the recognized expertise of Christian Cévaër to advance its public-interest mission. With more than twenty-five years of experience in information systems and cybersecurity, he notably served as the National Digital Security Delegate at ANSSI in the Brittany region between 2019 and 2024. In that role, he supported the creation and growth of France Cyber Maritime.
This new phase comes in a context marked by rising digital threats and the forthcoming implementation of the “Resilience of Critical Infrastructure and Strengthening Cybersecurity” law, transposing the European NIS 2 directive into French law. This legislation will extend cybersecurity obligations to a broader range of public and private entities.
