Space infrastructures are the ground and orbital systems that make space-based services work, including satellites, control centers, launch support, telemetry, tracking, user terminals, and the networks that connect them. They are not just spacecraft in orbit; they are end-to-end operational ecosystems that must stay synchronized and trusted.
Cybersecurity matters here because disruption can affect communications, navigation, Earth observation, timing, and other critical services that many sectors rely on. These environments are especially sensitive to weak access control, insecure updates, supply-chain compromise, and interference with command-and-control links. Defenders therefore use strict operational discipline: segmented networks, strong authentication, signed software, continuous monitoring, and tightly controlled change management. In attacks, adversaries may try to hijack ground systems or disrupt service availability; in defense, the goal is to preserve mission integrity even when parts of the system are exposed or degraded.