DORA and NIS 2: Importance and key differences explained

The Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) and the Revised Network and Information Systems (NIS 2) are two of the latest EU cybersecurity regulations designed to fortify the security posture and cyber resilience of in-scope entities.

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Both regulations share the same general purpose of increasing their respective sectors' overall transparency and security. Still, their approaches to this goal vary in several key aspects you’ll learn about in this guide.

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Specifically, we’ll cover:

• Key facts about DORA and NIS 2
• The importance of complying with each
• Four main differences between the two regulations

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What is NIS 2?

NIS 2 is an EU directive that imposes various requirements and controls on organizations within the Member States to help strengthen their cybersecurity posture. It’s an extension of the original NIS directive, expanding its scope to additional sectors for more comprehensive coverage.

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The directive also introduces stricter and clearer cybersecurity requirements than its predecessor, a welcome change considering the original NIS's lack of prescriptive guidance.

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NIS 2 came into effect in October 2024, so its implementation is well underway. If you haven’t adjusted your security controls to meet the directive’s requirements, you should do so as soon as possible to avoid legal repercussions and considerable penalties, covered below.

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What is DORA?

DORA is an EU regulation that applies to a wide range of financial entities, including banks, investment firms, insurance companies, and payment service providers. Its main goal is to ensure the stability of the EU’s finance and insurance sectors by strengthening their resilience to information and communication technology (ICT) threats.

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DORA was enacted on January 16, 2023, and the European Commission left 24 months for its implementation among affected entities. As of January 17, 2025, compliance is mandatory, and the European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) have already started their activities.

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This means that DORA, besides NIS 2, is another important regulation your organization should comply with, and there are multiple reasons for this.

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Why you should comply with NIS 2 and DORA

The main reason to comply with both DORA and NIS 2 is to fulfill your regulatory obligations and avoid potentially disruptive compliance gaps that can threaten your organization’s security posture. Both frameworks prescribe effective cybersecurity guidelines you should follow to protect your organization from ever-evolving security threats.

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Besides, ensuring timely compliance lets you avoid considerable fines, amounting to millions of euros. Both regulations also impose notable non-financial (including holding individuals or management personally liable) penalties in case of violations, which can significantly disrupt your operations.

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Even out-of-scope organizations can greatly benefit from adopting these frameworks for multiple reasons, including:

• Improved cybersecurity posture: DORA and NIS 2 require a granular overview of your security controls, helping you understand your cybersecurity posture and upgrade it with effective measures
• Operational continuity: Besides the legal and regulatory complications you might encounter if you don’t comply with DORA and NIS 2, you can also avoid severe disruptions caused by different types of security breaches
• Industry-wide transparency: Both DORA and NIS 2 strive toward an industry-level increase in security transparency in their respective sectors, creating a more stable and trusting operational environment
• Improved stakeholder trust: Demonstrating DORA and NIS 2 compliance timely shows responsibility toward your regulatory obligations and data protection, giving stakeholders more confidence in engaging with your organization
• Harmonized security compliance: DORA and NIS 2 bring together various guidelines from different authoritative sources, offering a holistic approach to cybersecurity

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4 key differences between NIS 2 and DORA

While NIS 2 and DORA share the same overarching goal and a few general attributes like legal weight and geographic presence, they differ in a few crucial aspects:

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The table above covers broad distinctions, but let’s take a closer look at four differentiators that can impact your compliance strategy:

1. Regulation type
2. Scope
3. Focus areas
4. Non-compliance penalties

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Below we’ll cover each difference in more detail.

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1. Regulation type

NIS 2 is a directive, meaning it leaves room for Member States to specify the details regarding its implementation. The specific controls and obligations can vary as long as each jurisdiction can develop an enforceable framework aligned with the directive’s broad requirements.

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By contrast, DORA is a regulation, meaning it’s universally applicable to in-scope entities across the EU and doesn’t allow the same leeway as NIS 2. The regulation imposes the same rules on all EU Member States and their organizations, making it less interpretative than NIS 2.

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Despite the differences in implementation, NIS 2 and DORA are both mandatory. The latter can be implemented by following the European Commission’s guidance, while NIS 2 might require additional guidance from the governing body of your specific jurisdiction.

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2. Scope

DORA primarily applies to EU-based financial entities and ICT service providers. Several examples of both categories are outlined in the following table:

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NIS 2 has a broader scope and encompasses multiple sectors, including:

• Energy
• Transport
• Banking
• B2B ICT service management
• Postal and courier services
• Waste management

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Organizations within these sectors can be classified into two categories under NIS 2:

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The classification is based on an organization’s industry and size. NIS 2 primarily targets large and mid-sized organizations, though small businesses and startups might be impacted under specific conditions outlined in Article 2.

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While NIS 2 applies to a broader range of organizations, financial entities and their ICT service providers should prioritize DORA, as it takes precedence under lex specialis. However, organizations subject to both regulations still must comply with NIS 2’s general cybersecurity obligations in areas not fully covered by DORA, such as cross-sector cooperation and information-sharing requirements for critical infrastructure.

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Notably, both DORA and NIS 2 may apply to your organization, even if it’s domiciled outside the EU. If you provide services to entities within Member States, you may need to implement at least some of the prescribed controls. 

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Therefore, organizations must ensure full compliance by meeting both the specific requirements of DORA and the general requirements of NIS 2.

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3. Focus areas

DORA’s main focus is the effective mitigation of ICT-related cybersecurity risks for the financial sector. The regulation is built upon five pillars:

1. ICT risk management: Your organization needs to have a dedicated control function responsible for identifying, assessing, and mitigating ICT risks
2. ICT-related incident management: You need a documented incident response program that encompasses the detection, containment, resolution, and notification of ICT-related incidents
3. Digital operational resilience testing: You must develop, implement, and ongoingly review a digital operational resilience testing program that helps you uncover and patch security vulnerabilities 
4. ICT third-party risk management: DORA requires a robust third-party risk management (TPRM) framework that will simplify the detection and mitigation of third-party ICT risks
5. Information sharing: DORA allows (but doesn’t require) entities to exchange cyber threat information with other organizations in the financial sector to increase readiness and transparency

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NIS 2 has a broader focus and aims to help organizations strengthen their overall cybersecurity posture beyond ICT risks. Some of the key cybersecurity risk-management measures encompassed by it include:

• Policies on risk analysis and information system security 
• Incident handling
• Business continuity (backup management, crisis management, etc.)
• Supply chain security
• Security in network and information systems acquisition, development and maintenance, including vulnerability handling and disclosure
• Policies and procedures to assess cybersecurity risk-management measures
• Cybersecurity training and basic security hygiene
• Cryptography and encryption
• Access control policies, asset management, and human resource security
• Multi-factor authentication (MFA)

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Even though both DORA and NIS 2 address the security of external parties, NIS 2 places a stronger emphasis on supply chain security. Meanwhile, DORA aims to ensure robust third-party risk management, covering a broader range of external service providers.

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4. Non-compliance penalties

In case of DORA non-compliance, organizations might face various administrative penalties, such as:

• Cease and desist orders for non-compliant practices
• Pecuniary measures as defined by the Member State’s governing body
• Requests for data traffic records

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Financial entities are also subject to fines of up to 2% of their total annual worldwide turnover or up to €1,000,000 for individuals. For ICT providers, the penalties stand at €5,000,000 or up to €500,000 for individuals.

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Organizations that fail to comply with NIS 2 can also encounter non-monetary penalties and criminal sanctions for C-level executives. They may also face substantial fines, specifically:

• Essential entities: A maximum fine of at least €10,000,000 or 2% of the global annual revenue, whichever is higher
• Important entities: A maximum fine of at least €7,000,000 or 1.4% of the global annual revenue, whichever is higher

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Besides lower penalties, important entities face less stringent supervision than essential entities. While essential entities must be more proactive, important entities are subject to ex-post supervision, meaning oversight occurs after evidence of non-compliance or security breaches emerges.

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Both NIS 2 and DORA can also hold members of management personally liable for cases of gross negligence and willful misconduct. Still, regulators are not expected to impose personal penalties routinely—enforcement will likely be exercised in extreme cases where non-compliance results from deliberate negligence or a disregard for security obligations.

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Given these penalties and oversight differences, determining whether your organization falls under DORA, NIS 2, or both is crucial to properly allocate resources.

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Should you comply with DORA or NIS 2?

Deciding whether to comply with DORA or NIS 2 boils down to your organization’s sector. If you’re in the finance industry, you should comply with the former because it takes precedence over the equivalent requirements of NIS 2. Otherwise, you may need to pursue NIS 2 compliance if the directive applies to your organization.

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Either way, full compliance with these frameworks requires a structured approach. While DORA and NIS 2 outline various controls, you might need more detailed prescriptive guidance for thorough implementation.

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Without a clear roadmap, you might end up with unnecessarily complex and scattered workflows that can make timely compliance more difficult. To avoid such issues, you should ensure proactive compliance management.

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A dedicated trust management platform simplifies this process by automating workflows, centralizing documentation, and ensuring real-time compliance tracking, allowing you to achieve DORA and NIS 2 compliance with less manual effort.

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Ensure NIS 2 and DORA compliance with Vanta

Vanta is a comprehensive compliance and trust management platform that automates a significant portion of compliance workflows for NIS 2 and DORA. It offers a dedicated NIS 2 product that comes with various helpful resources, such as:

• 50+ technical controls
• 100+ document templates
• 600+ relevant tests
• 10+ policies

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Combined with over 375 integrations and advanced automation features, these resources give you a considerable headstart and improve the workflow efficiency of your compliance process. You can catch up with all the necessary requirements and implement NIS 2 effortlessly.

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Vanta also offers an equally capable DORA product that simplifies compliance with all the relevant obligations. You can use it to fortify your security posture according to DORA’s requirements and ensure robust cyber resilience.

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Whether you’re pursuing DORA, NIS 2, or both, Vanta will automatically map your organization’s existing controls to each regulation’s requirements. Doing so prevents duplicate work and lets you achieve compliance faster.

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To see Vanta’s NIS 2 product in action, schedule a custom demo for a hands-on experience.

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A note from Vanta: Vanta is not a law firm, and this article does not constitute or contain legal advice or create an attorney-client relationship. When determining your obligations and compliance with respect to relevant laws and regulations, you should consult a licensed attorney.