Importance of an ICS Asset Inventory for Critical Infrastructures in the Middle East
A strong base for OT/ICS security needs real-time access of the entire hardware, software and firmware in the network, customer’s data, active accounts information, patches status, susceptibilities, network system configurations, windows updates, implanted system backplanes, the status of diverse security components such as application firewalls, whitelisting, antivirus, etc.
This in-depth, comprehensive asset inventory bases the groundwork for accurate endpoint operation and safety. Cost and time are ultimately reduced by having such kinds of inventory available.
What is an ICS Asset Inventory?
ICS asset inventory is the up-to-date, precise collection of hardware and software information functioning in industrial control system ecosystems. At a minimum, a comprehensive ICS inventory should include the following types of data:
- The software inventory should contain the information of the operating system, firmware, application software and all the other software data.
- Known susceptibilities and their CVSS rank, attack vectors, and possible remediation.
- Configuration settings are required to understand whether the system is protected for ports, services, and passwords.
- Record all customer data and accounts on each asset, including dormant, shared, local, admin, etc.
- Patch report of OS and application software.
- Backup status.
- Criticality data to evaluate the importance of the asset to the operation.
- Network connections and potential paths, and the network security in place
- Antivirus and other security software status, to comprehend whether they are up-to-date.
- Location details such as rack, cabinet, building, etc. to allow the quick physical finding of assets.
- Including the IP, serial and other device information, an inventory should possess the data of all hardware devices operated in the ecosystem – both on and off the network This should also comprise model and critical statistics such as memory, storage, etc.
A rich asset inventory is designed in a way that all the cyber security journey stages are covered. The above-mentioned asset inventory covers all the security stages of a company and becomes the base for a powerful ICS security program.
Why is an asset inventory critical for ICS security?
IT/OT’s robust cyber security plan requires an in-depth asset database to effectively implement their security solutions and protect the organization’s data from security breaches. Security experts use the asset data to:
- Conduct patch management, which is essential to ensure that the system is up-to-date, is impossible without a complete software inventory. The list forms the ground on which patches are determined.
- Secure configurations that are critical to cyber security, but safe configuration maintenance needs precise, in-depth, and timely asset inventory reports.
- Ensure robust recovery functions which require visibility into each device’s backup status to confirm it is updated and precise.
What are the perks of having OT/ICS assets?
A computerized and potent asset inventory improves the industrial environment’s efficiency and cyber security maturity by converging all endpoint asset info into one view to Recognize, Defend, Detect, React and Recover from a single platform.
Top 5 perks of having OT/ICS assets are:
1. Asset inventory management improves precision
Computerized operational technology asset inventory software delivers improved precision in comparison to manual procedures, delivering a real-time view into which assets are linked to a network.
Real-time info here implies having a document of informed decisions on emerging threats while securing the networks.
2. Asset inventory leaves an audit tracking
Devices like laptops connected to diverse networks pose a security risk to operational technology networks.
Security experts use specific software packages, sometimes packages worth more than the security budget, to debug operational issues. This usually indicates the software is installed on that one laptop in a corner, which is infrequently used or connected to acquire security patches or anti-virus signature updates.
Automated asset inventory security solutions provide the details of the diverse networks the device is connected to in real-time, allowing you to audit which assets migrate around the system. It also tracks agents or third-party equipment that links to your network. In the event of a security breach, this information saved in the inventory could be crucial in resolving the point of infiltration.
3. Asset inventory management completes the task in a short time
The only way to get an accurate inventory of assets in the past was to do it manually, that is, physically traveling and recording every asset in the system.
Humans tend to make mistakes; after all, we are created in such a way. Keeping the statement in mind, it is challenging for an expert to accurately record data on operational technology. There is a high chance of missing a room full of assets between the massive industrial plants covering a large real estate area.
An automated real-time asset inventory software cut-shorts time by locating all of your assets with minimal intervention. Within minutes of deploying a computerized discovery tool, staff time is saved to focus on other tasks.
4. Asset inventory management locates unauthorized systems
Many OT systems use network segmentation to reduce risk and defend their assets from cyber attacks.
The problem with network segmentation is that it’s somewhat easy for someone to plug something into the incorrect network or segmented bridge networks without some auditing body. This security incident often occurs by mistake, not intentionally or maliciously, but merely because the person didn’t have the idea.
With an automated asset discovery software tool, OT asset holders can defend themselves from incorrectly networked systems by locating the assets and networks linked to them. With this improved real-time visibility, holders can quickly remediate these problems.
5. Asset inventory management automates detection and analysis
To maintain your system’s integrity, it is critical to find new assets connected to the network.
Sometimes new assets are detected to be present on the network in the real-time OT inventory software. But the moment assets are not found on the network, an automated discovery tool saves time by providing real-time detection of all unfound assets.
Automated real-time asset detection and investigation allows you to detect an unwanted or malicious asset linked to the network, so you can respond and start the correction immediately. This results in detecting cyber threats quickly before it evolves into an acute or even life-threatening event.
How can ATS help you?
ICS asset inventory management forms the base of the critical infrastructure security plan. Without extensive ICS inventory management, businesses function on quicksand: i.e., they don’t comprehend the system’s actual security status and are incapable of conducting effective security management at scale.
A critical step in defending ICSs against cyber threats is recognizing and recording the ICS assets that ground the system. Facilities may not have a complete and updated report that capture modifications over time.
Using physical evaluation and passive network discovery, ATS, with 18 years of hands-on experience in the cybersecurity niche, can assist businesses in developing or updating their ICS asset inventory. This effort is correlated to ICS network and data flow diagrams or an ICS cybersecurity susceptibility check for efficiency.
ATS seeks to enhance its services of cybersecurity in the Middle East to assist its customers in defending their integrated IT-OT networks and filling OT security voids by implementing cybersecurity solutions to deliver essential visibility, control, and behavioural reports.
Connect with one of the experts at ATS and get a full consultation for an ICS Asset inventory for your critical infrastructure at https://ats.ae/ics-ot-cyber-security/
OR
Visit the website of one of the partners of ATS in securing ICS security – Cisco Cyber Vision at https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/products/security/cyber-vision/index.html
