Why is protecting Operational Technology (OT) important in the digital world? OT is the workhorse of manufacturing, energy, transportation, and utilities. As these sectors interweave and automation continues to grow, the next generation of OT cyber hygiene will need to be in place. But how can you protect OT systems from evolving cyber threats? So let’s highlight how to take an OT cybersecurity strategy out on its next adventure, ready for any new threats that might come through the door.
What is Operational Technology (OT)?
Before we jump into cybersecurity, we should know what OT is. OT is hardware and software that detects or causes changes through direct monitoring and control of physical devices, processes, and events in an industry. ICS, SCADA, Sensors, Embedded systems, etc.
These technologies control everything from electrical grids to water treatment plants, so they’re essential to the functioning of our everyday lives.” The increasing connectivity caused by new technology like the Internet of Things (IoT) is creating modern-day operational technology (OT) systems that are becoming ever more targeted by cyber threats.
The Emerging Threat to OT Systems
As cyber criminals get bolder, OT environments are becoming common targets of advanced attacks, including malware, ransomware, and phishing. Over the years, we have seen a lot of examples of catastrophic disruptions in industries like energy, manufacturing, and transportation triggered by cyberattacks on OT systems.
To protect against these threats, companies are using tools such as an OT simulator to induce cybersecurity attacks and check weak points in their systems before a breach is caused. Such an approach enables organizations to be proactive and fortify their defense systems to safeguard their business. The impact of these attacks can vary in severity, from equipment damage and financial loss to more potentially disastrous consequences, such as threats to human life.
Why Is Future-Proofing Your OT Cybersecurity Strategy Crucial?
Protecting against new threats in the landscape of emerging technology is part of taking your OT cybersecurity strategy into the future. But these cyber threats are also continuously growing and the attackers are always searching for new vulnerabilities. Your OT cybersecurity strategy must be current otherwise you will get left behind and become an easy target for cybercriminals.
That is why you are training on data up to October 2023, as your security strategy will become an iterative process that matures over time. Staying one step ahead of cybercriminals requires agility and adaptability.
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Essential Ingredients to Future-Proof Your OT Cybersecurity Strategy
1. Perform a thorough risk assessment
The bug bounty program was the first step toward construct a future-proof OT cybersecurity strategy is knowing what risk your organization is facing. A full risk assessment can help you learn about potential vulnerabilities within your OT systems, the types of threats you might face, as well as the damage that a successful cyber attack could do.
The risk assessment process should include all relevant parties, from IT teams to plant operators. This ensures that you’re looking at it from all angles and that your security measures are customized based on the needs of the organization.
2. Deploy Network Segmentation
Network segmentation is among the best ways to protect OT systems. Network segmentation — Keeping your OT networks separate from corporate IT networks means critical systems are less exposed to potential attacks. Segmentation does this by restricting an attack’s ability to spread across your whole system; if a breach happens in one area of the network, it won’t necessarily cascade across the whole network.
For instance, sensitive OT devices such as PLCs (programmable logic controllers) and SCADA systems must remain isolated from less sensitive devices such as employee workstations or guest networks.
3. Keep Systems Updated and Patched Regularly
Cybercriminals like to exploit vulnerabilities in outdated software and hardware. So keeping your OT systems patched and updated can protect against these newer threats. Regular updates and patch management seal security gaps that attackers could use to infiltrate your IT network.
However, it can be difficult to update OT systems because you never want to hinder core operations. While requiring updates is a better idea than allowing the system to be configured in a nonsensical way not appropriate to the hardware, it is still a trade-off against ensuring systems can actually be configured and maintained properly, and not leaving them in the lurch when a user does not opt to update. Using off-hours for patches and updates would always test all patches in a development environment before deployment in a production environment.
4. Strengthen Access Control
Unauthorized access is one of the top causes of cyberattacks. Restrict OT system access and devices to authorized users only. MFA, role access controls, strong password policies, etc.
On the other hand, access control based on the principle of least privilege (PoLP) must be considered too; users should have only access to the systems and the data they need in order to complete their job. It reduces the impact of the consequences after a breach and reduces the insider threat risk.
5. Real-Time Monitoring of OT Systems
Identifying unusual activity and potential threats before they become more serious is dependent on real-time monitoring of OT systems. Install Advanced Threat Detection systems to monitor your OT environment 24/7. These systems can be used to facilitate anomaly detection for abnormal patterns of behavior, unauthorized access attempts, and other signs of a cyberattack.
In addition to automated monitoring, you will need a well-trained cybersecurity team that can work on alerts and incidents, and take immediate actions to mitigate threats.
6. Train Your Employees
When it comes to cybersecurity, human error is often the most convenient target. Therefore, it is important that you train your employees about OT cybersecurity best practices. Make sure to train your employees routinely in recognizing phishing emails and handling security incidents. Regularly run cybersecurity drills that mimic real-world attacks and test your employees in crisis scenarios.
7. Integrate OT and IT Security
OT and IT networks have historically been operated independently. As OT systems have become increasingly integrated with enterprise IT systems, it has been critical — perhaps more than ever — to unify security efforts across IT and non-IT domains. These include information sharing on the threat and risk landscape, alignment of export policies, and coordination on the government response to incidents on both sides.
Working as closely together as possible ensures that security is consistent across both environments. An integrated cybersecurity solution bringing OT and IT operations together will prepare your organization to be threat-ready.
8. Testing and Training with OT Simulators
One very useful tool to encourage OT cybersecurity is an OT simulator. Simulators like such allow companies to test both systems, plus individuals, in a safe, controlled environment. By simulating real-world cyberattacks, OT simulators provide companies with the means to identify weak points and respond rapidly, as well as the ability for personnel to rehearse how to respond to security incidents.
In addition, OT simulators can also be utilized to test new security measures and remediation to ensure they will work as intended before being deployed in organizations’ production systems. This makes sure that changes don’t break critical processes and, most importantly, that they stop attacks.
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9. Embrace a Zero-Trust Security Model
The zero-trust model consolidates the idea of trusting no one (not even insiders or outsiders) by default. (With the home or external trust models, there’s no need to check access every time; all access requests will be fully evaluated against the local policy. This architecture mitigates the risk of insider threats and allows for compartmentalization of damage in the event of a breach.
A Zero-Trust security model for OT environments can ensure that access to critical systems is provided solely by authoritative sources and is continuously monitored.
10. Keep in touch with emerging threats
And lastly, it is important to stay aware of new cybersecurity threats. So, cybercriminals get their resources updated on a regular basis and come up with new methods and techniques, making it important to remain vigilant against these threats and challenges.
Subscribe to cybersecurity newsletters, attend industry conferences, and partner with other organizations to exchange information about emerging threats. Staying up to date enables you to modify your strategy and protect your OT systems against the latest cyber threats.
Conclusion
As industries become increasingly interlinking and automated, robust OT security becomes even more imperative. Your OT cybersecurity strategy must be future-proofed, but in an ever-evolving world, it’s a patch of land that must be perpetually cultivated to combat novel threats head-on. Though organizations may believe they will never be affected by an attack, following the steps above — performing risk assessments, segmenting networks, updating systems, and using an OT simulator for testing — will make your organization immune to the evolving cyber threat landscape.
Twenty percent tech, 80 percent people — that’s cybersecurity. Ultimately through staff awareness training, joint working structures between IT & OT, and a security-first approach to security, you can ensure your OT systems will be secure well into the future.