On December 12, ARC will join Nozomi Networks for a webinar on ICS cybersecurity vendor selection in OT environments.  The convergence of Information and Operational technology in manufacturing enterprises is at the forefront of end-user concerns as they struggle to implement secure Industrial Internet of Things solutions. 

Organizations attempt to prevent information security incidents by embedding tools in policies and practices across business functions. Because it is not possible to completely prevent security events, organizations must also include proven response practices as part of their security program.

ARC will be attending and presenting at the ICS Cyber Security Conference next week in Atlanta on the topic of cybersecurity as it relates to supplier selection.

By now many of you have probably read the blockbuster story from Bloomberg/BusinessWeek called The Big Hack: How China Used a Tiny Chip to Infiltrate US Companies, which outlined a complex and far-reaching scheme on the part of the People’s Liberation Army of China to infiltrate server motherboards manufactured by Supermicro, described by the Bloomberg as the “Microsoft of the hardware world.”

ARC Advisory Group research indicates that while many companies across a wide spectrum of industries have implemented cybersecurity technologies to protect their facilities, few have the resources to sustain their effectiveness.  Lack of cybersecurity expertise also constrains use of more advanced anomaly and breach detection solutions that enable rapid detection and removal of system compromises. 

DHS recently held several webinars in the wake of its March announcement regarding Russian state-sponsored hacking group Energetic Bear/Dragonfly on utilities and critical infrastructure installations in the US.  The webinar focused on some of the more interesting and unique aspects of these recent attacks plus some countermeasures that end users can implement right now that can greatly reduce the likelihood of future attacks. 

The announcement in March and these recent statements about cybersecurity should be a call to action for end users in the utilities, critical infrastructure, industrial, and smart cities sectors.  

Convergence has obvious implications for cybersecurity. OT’s focus on non-stop operations and eliminating unscheduled downtime is raising the cybersecurity issue on the IT side, and increased data from IT is raising the same issue on the OT side. Each organization’s behavior is driven by what they value, how they think, and how they are rewarded.

In advance of the SANS Oil and Gas Cybersecurity Summit in Houston Oct. 1-6, I will be participating in a webcast with Doug Wylie of SANS and Marty Edwards of the Automation Federation to discuss the emergence of new process safety system malware and its impact on the process industries, including both upstream and downstream oil and gas.