Cybersecurity breaches in critical infrastructure networks are becoming more common, as seen in recent news. The Colonial Pipeline shutdown, a ransomware assault by cybercriminal outfit DarkSide that halted the flow of 2.5 million barrels of oil product, is one recent high-profile event.

The magnitude of the threat is frightening. Critical infrastructure providers, on the other hand, may own the solution with a greater awareness of new cybersecurity risks and rapid response.

5 Ways to Prevent Critical Infrastructure Cyberattacks

A contemporary approach to cybersecurity is also on the horizon as utilities and other essential infrastructures join the twenty-first century through green energy and grid upgrading.

1. Promote a cybersecurity culture

Finally, human humans safeguard your business. When a single employee downloads a file containing malware, submits their credentials to a cybercriminal by accident or fails to patch or update their equipment, your system is compromised.

And, with brute force and password spraying, your system is only as secure as the weakest password.

The majority of breaches are caused by a lack of training, a lack of protocols, or human mistakes. According to Utility Dive’s 2021 State of the Electric Utility (SEU) Survey Report, 55% of electric utility professionals have a systematic approach to energy management.

Your IT personnel aren’t the only ones in charge of cybersecurity. Everyone should be taught about typical cyberattacks and vulnerabilities, encouraged to update and secure their devices, and kept up to date on cybercrime trends. Bricata, a cybersecurity firm, suggests that marketing teams cooperate with cybersecurity professionals to foster a cybersecurity culture in a corporation. Furthermore, utilities must build effective incident response strategies, communicate best practices throughout their networks, and promote openness by reporting assaults to the authorities.

You may even hold cyber “war games” to put your protocols to the test.

2. Implement recommended practices for cyber hygiene

As you build a cybersecurity culture, you should also implement the following standard safeguards:

Malware removal software scans your devices, detects dangers, and eliminates dangerous software.

SIEM (Security Information and Event Management): Protects against malicious software while also monitoring network activity and access.

Firewall: A digital barrier that examines, analyses, and filters incoming communication between internal systems and the outside world.

Trust Zones: Additional firewalls are created within your internal network to safeguard sensitive data that need extra protection.

Data Encryption: Encrypt data on your devices as well as communication between devices: this is very important for smart grids, smart metres, and other IoT applications.

When entering a network or system, employees must supply more than just a password.

You may also opt to engage a cybersecurity firm or consultant. Big data and artificial intelligence are increasingly being utilised to monitor networks. If you’ve already implemented these recommended practices, start creating a cohesive Zero Trust plan that assumes you’ve already been compromised and mitigates internal risks.

3. Invest in both physical and digital security.

According to 57 per cent of electric utility professionals, spending on digital operations and security has increased. Surprisingly, the figure isn’t higher in this age of the digital revolution.

Of course, implementing best practices and cultivating a cybersecurity culture come at a cost – but as hackers comb your IT/OT networks for holes, you’ll need to increase your cybersecurity staff and invest in physical protection.

Physical asset protection

Physical security cannot be overlooked when OT and IT merge. Because of the geographic obstacles in guarding these vast areas, solar and wind farms sometimes have inadequate security. Even still, physical assets like these might enable access to a utility’s network – often all that stands between an attacker and the innards of a wind turbine is a padlock. Furthermore, many customer-facing assets, such as charging stations or smart metres, must be protected to prevent tampering or network access. Because utilities have a broad attack surface and hackers will exploit any flaw, protection for both digital and physical assets must be strengthened.

4. Encourage clear communication and leadership

Cyber vulnerabilities are sometimes caused by a lack of communication and leadership. With so many sites, networks, teams, and assets – especially for critical infrastructure suppliers.

According to McKinsey & Company, information silos – a lack of communication and cooperation within teams – are frequent.

How can information silos be avoided?

Make sure your business has a centralised cybersecurity team that is well-known across.

Each unit should have a “security champion” who will interact and cooperate with the centralised team. Create protocols that everyone will adhere to and that is uniform across OT and IT networks. Give your cybersecurity team decision-making authority and a reasonable budget. Inform your leaders, board, and management about cybersecurity regularly.

5. Examine network devices, assets, and other network components

Utility experts assessed their firms’ capacity to track all of their digital assets as “very low” in research published by Siemens and the Ponemon Institute.

You can’t safeguard what you don’t know about, hence it’s critical to audit all network devices:

  • Personal electronic gadgets Bring Your Device (BYOD)
  • Several networks and webpages
  • Mobile phones
  • Services provided by other parties
  • IoT and smart technology (Internet of Things)
  • Various other applications and hardware