7 Predictions for global energy cybersecurity in 2022
We now live in a world where cyberattacks can shut down critical infrastructure. Those who follow the mega-trends driving the global economy — like the convergence of the digital revolution and the energy transition — understand that with more and more critical infrastructure remotely operated or digitally managed, it was only a matter of time before a cyberattack caused disruptions that crossed over into the physical world. Last year, I wrote that 2021 would “shine a light on the need for industrial cybersecurity.”
Sure enough, a ransomware attack on the Colonial Pipeline operators prompted a weeklong shutdown, cutting nearly half of liquid fuel supplies for the eastern United States. Gas prices spiked, more than 10,000 gas stations ran out of fuel, and the targeted company paid $4.4 million in ransom. Federal and state governments stepped in to soften the economic impact, offering a $10 million reward to identify the individuals who perpetrated the attack.
These are predictable consequences of today’s cybersecurity landscape. For companies hoping to avoid the uncomfortable spotlight that comes with being this year’s object lesson in cyber vulnerabilities, it’s worth stepping back to consider the broad trends driving cyberattacks and the new horizons in cyber defense.
For years, the drive for business efficiencies and lower carbon emissions has incentivized digitalization. And while digitalization is often associated with newer technologies like electric cars, grid-scale solar and wind, and smart city infrastructure, retrofits of existing pipelines, thermal plants, and factories are just as prevalent. Previously analog systems are now digitally automated. Remote operations allow a handful of workers to centrally manage several worksites.
All this progress relies on the huge and growing number of smart devices embedded in electric grids and industrial supply chains. Chief information security officers, or CISOs, need to keep up with the scale of change and recognize that cyber defense is no longer focused on stacks of servers and personal computers.
Here’s the good news: Today’s cyber defenders can take advantage of an ecosystem of technical solutions and information-sharing. Even as threats continue to evolve, defenses can respond faster than ever — if they’re built with adaptability in mind. Getting these defenses right unlocks a huge set of technologies that enable greater efficiency, greater productivity, and lower emissions.
As organizations grapple with what 2022 will bring, here are seven trends to expect.
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The big mistake is that the people who operate these intelligent systems seem to think that they need to be connected to the internet. We have painfully seen, over and over again, how these systems have been brutalized by someone via the internet. There should be no connection from the internet to these systems at all. An unplugged cable is a far better security than the best firewall or most miserable password management system. The modern hacker is a professional IT person working for a foreign government-not a pimply teenager who cant get a date!