Preparing Risks For The 2026 Winter Olympics

Winter Olympics for 2026 is around the corner. Even though physical security is taken very serious for these events, Italy is taking steps further behind the scenes to digitally protect the audience of the event.

In 2024 Paris Summer Olympics, Reuters blog had disclosed there were 22 cyber breaches that gave unauthorize access to information systems. Even though the attacks did not disrupt the olympic games, it still brought thoughts on how to prevent this for the following olympic event.

With billions of volunteers, participants, teams, and viewers, it will not be a surprised to see cyber threats being present during this year's event.

Hypothetical Cyber Risks Italy Is Preparing For

CyberSpeak Labs has created a matrix for hypothetical risks that could occur during the 2026 Winter Olympics.

DISCLAIMER:

CyberSpeak Labs does not state, imply, or endorse that any of the risks discussed are associated with actual, planned, or imminent cyber breaches or threats. All risks presented are hypothetical and are derived from analysis of publicly available information, including openly published technology articles and publicly released videos describing the 2026 Winter Olympics infrastructure by event organizers.

This risk matrix is intended solely for educational and informational purposes, demonstrating methodologies for identifying and measuring cyber risk within an enterprise environment. It should not be interpreted as an assessment of the security posture of any specific organization, system, or event.

Risk ID	Category	Description	Likelihood	Impact	Preventives	Additional Notes
RI-1	Network Availability	Hacktivist against political views or countries, disrupt network service or availability of visual devices.	High	Critical	Rate limit of external facing applications and separate olympic critical systems on separate vlans.	Hacktivist gain value in public takedowns and symbolic rupture.
RI-2	Third-Party	Volunteer devices, attendance systems, or vendor devices will allow external access to the Olympics' network.	Medium	High	Place these devices on a separate vlan and ensure MFA is established for all accounts, including the default admin account.	Ensure vendor assessment is done prior to bringing the devices to the 2026 Winter Games.
R1-3	Social Engineering	Fake tickets, QR codes, or promotions are placed on the internet. This is for fraudulent purchases or introducing malware to a system and harming the 2026 Winter Olympics' reputation.	High	Medium	Provide a note in the FAQ page for the 2026 Olympics regarding fake promotions.	This is a common tactic by hacktivist and other threat actors to gain information or promote their activism.
RI-4	Data Handling	Winter Olympics over collects information from both vendors, sponsors, volunteers, participants, and viewers. Overcollection of PII can lead to a higher risk of unauthorized data disclosure.	High	Low	Collect data that is only necessary.	Ensure data is maintained for the time allocated and is clearly defined in the data privacy for the event. Data that is shared should be as-needed.
R1-5	Insider Threat	Disgruntled volunteer, employee, or team member can abuse their technical privileges to collect or sell data in unauthorized manner.	Medium	Medium	Ensure extra monitoring is set in place around sensitive and confidential information.	Data stolen could bring financial gain or unethically allow a team to perform better.

For general questions regarding the 2026 Winter Olympics, you can reach out to the event's contact information here.