Since November 2025, Despina Spanou has served as the Deputy Director-General for the Directorate for Cybersecurity and Trust in the Directorate-General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology (DG CONNECT) at the European Commission.

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Previously, she was the Head of Cabinet to the European Commission Vice-President, Margaritis Schinas (2019–2024). In this role, she coordinated the Vice-President’s work on security, migration and asylum, health, skills, education, culture, and sport. She also led the EU Security Union portfolio, covering counterterrorism, organised crime, cybersecurity, and hybrid threats.

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Prior to that, Ms. Spanou served as Director for Digital Society, Trust, and Cybersecurity at DG CONNECT. She was responsible for the European Union’s cybersecurity policy and legislation, served on the Management Board of ENISA, and was a member of the Steering Board of the Computer Emergency Response Team for the EU Institutions (CERT-EU). She is also a founding member of the Women4Cyber initiative and a strong advocate for increasing cybersecurity expertise across Europe. In addition, she teaches EU Cybersecurity Policy at Harvard Kennedy School.

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During her more than 20 years at the European Commission, Ms. Spanou held several senior management positions in the fields of Health and Consumer Policy and served as Deputy Head of Cabinet for Commissioners Kyprianou and Vassiliou. Before joining the European Commission, she practised EU competition and trade law with a U.S. law firm.

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Despina Spanou is a member of the Athens Bar Association and holds a Ph.D. in European Law from the University of Cambridge.