ATS Highlights in 2021
It’s been a very exciting year for ATS – and we are very glad to say that in this time marked by significant challenges and fast market changes, we’ve succeeded in keeping a close beat on new industry developments while staying aligned with the needs of our clients.
Special effort went into keeping ATS’ digital presence and activities dynamic and varied, as we engaged with our professional network and client base by way of different projects throughout the year. And we’re particularly proud of our new accomplishments and valued partnerships with other highly respected industry leaders, all acquired this year.
For a closer look into ATS’ highlights of 2021, read more below.
Cisco IoT Advantage Specialization Partnership
In June, we had the great pleasure of announcing that ATS has achieved Cisco IoT Advantage Specialization Partner certification.
Gaining valuable insights into cutting edge IoT developments, Cisco’s partner program allowed us to solidify our position as leading industry experts when it comes to custom tailored solutions and services for the energy, defence, and the government sector.
OT Networks Visibility and Security Webinar in Partnership with Cisco
In collaboration with Cisco, the very next month, we hosted a webinar focusing on critical infrastructure cyber security solutions, moderated by Samer Abu Arisheh, Cisco’s IoT Regional Sales Lead.
The two expert speakers were Mohamad Aboulniaj (Director of Operations and Head of OT Cybersecurity at ATS) and Pascal Eymin (Business Development Specialist at Cisco), who introduced the audience to Cisco Cyber Vision and presented the possibilities of its integration with ATS’ proposed gas pipeline component and operational solution.
The event gathered more than one thousand registered attendants from the UAE, Middle East, Europe, and the USA, who came from a diverse range of industries: Energy, Manufacturing, Technology, Chemical, and Financial Services.
CYBER SECURITY MONTH #BECYBERSMART
This fall, ATS decided to participate in the cyber security awareness campaign that launches globally every October to educate consumers and corporations about defending against cyber threats.
During this ‘cyber security month’, we dedicated ourselves to covering the vast space of security issues a company can face today. Expanding our scope of discussion, we also took a closer look into the history of both cyber security and cybercrime.
We’d like to particularly highlight two articles from this series:
If you’re looking for a quick introduction to the basics of industrial cybersecurity, then this is the article for you.
For your basic ‘cyber hygiene’ needs, we offer advice on some of the most crucial (but still often neglected) cyber protection steps: from things to consider when creating passwords and the benefits of multi-step authentication, to the importance of live threat intelligence solutions to the safety of your OT.
Building on the importance of being familiar with the history of cybercrime and cyber security, in this article we wanted to take a deeper dive into an early case of a devastating OT cyber attack: the case of the Maroochy water system hack from 2000.
For those looking to learn more about the world of cyber security regulations, this article represents an excellent place to start – as we discuss how the Maroochy hack directly affected the Australian legislative framework 20 years ago, and take a look into the state of cyber security regulation in the United States today.
Coffee Break Session #1 on Cisco’s OT Cyber Security Ebook
October was also the month in which we launched our new webinar session series: the Coffee Break Sessions.
It was our pleasure to host the first talk together with our partners from Cisco (represented by Miguel Peral, Technical Solutions Architect / IoT RTM Sales) – on the topic of Cisco’s new ebook: “Industrial Cybersecurity: Monitoring & Anomaly Detection”.
This issue on the challenges of ICS protection was designed and written in such a way to be widely accessible, yet still to be an in-depth guide into OT cyber security, and detailed enough to deliver valuable insights to the readers.
While we began the session by discussing the topic of the ebook, we also recognized the opportunity to have an informative conversation about Cisco’s approach to OT cyber security in general.
The webinar also included a Q&A session with the speakers – and after the talk was concluded, we compiled the most relevant questions raised and the most valuable answers given by ATS’ Director of Operations and Head of OT Cybersecurity Mohamad Aboulniaj into a useful list which can be found here.
Partnership with Fortinet and ADIPEC 2021
Continuing the fall in a busy manner, in November we were very happy to announce that ATS achieved Operational Technology (OT) Specialization through the Fortinet Engage Partner Program.
In a fast-moving industry such as the world of cyber security, specializations focused on market opportunities like the Fortinet Engage Partner Program help companies put their best foot forward and learn how to acquire, offer, and deploy all the expertise, services, and technologies necessary for business success today.
With the program completed, ATS’ sales and technical teams now have an even firmer grasp on the best practises in OT cyber security, and have familiarized themselves with Fortinet’s products in order to deliver quick solutions our clients need.
ATS was also very excited to participate in the annual Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition & Conference (ADIPEC) together with Fortinet. Hosted by the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), ADIPEC represents a one-of-a-kind marketplace of ideas, where representatives from select companies in the oil, gas and energy sectors can meet to discuss the latest developments in their respective industries, as well as identify new possibilities that are only just emerging in the field.
ATS was honored to be a part of this year’s event, which involved more than 2,000 companies and included 26 international country exhibition pavilions.
Operational Technology Cyber Security Ebook
We’re especially proud to announce the completion of our own ebook on the importance of ICS/OT cyber security and general protection protocol guidelines.
We consider this issue to be the perfect project to round the year off with, as it reaffirms some of the essential guidelines ATS has been faithfully following – not just for the past year, but for the entirety of our existence as an organization dedicated to preventing the risk of cyber threats.
We’re excited for what challenges the coming year might have for us, and invite you to continue following us on our journey to solidify the safety of cyberspace.
Be one of the first to have a copy of the ATS eBook on Operational Technology (OT) and download your free copy today.
