It’s been 18 years since the first National Cybersecurity Awareness Month (NCSAM), a campaign that was initially launched by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the National Cyber Security Alliance in order to empower both consumers and corporations in defending against cyber threats.

When listing the most dangerous industrial technology malware, a recent article by Stormshield ended on an ominous note. After shortly discussing the impacts of Shamoon, Industroyer, Triton and Stuxnet on world industry and economy, the last – and most threatening – malware on their 5-point list was left unnamed and unidentified.

President Biden has signed an executive order intending to protect American infrastructure from cyber attacks. The order was signed the day after the White House warned that cyber-attacks could “lead to a real shooting war”.

Efforts to put greater emphasis on cyber security aren’t new but the importance of the issue was clearly driven home by the attack against Colonial Pipeline,

IoT (INTERNET OF THINGS) devices were created in 1999. Since then, companies are continuously adding more and more IoT devices in their workspace as these devices make work a lot easier and faster. IoT devices are constantly upgrading with new features. The toaster is considered the first IoT device introduced in the market. And now there are thousands of IoT devices present in the market, for example, air quality sensors, Wi-fi typewriters, smart tennis rackets, etc.

ATS has recently concluded its first webinar as a certified Cisco IoT Advantage Specialization Partner.

Participating in Cisco’s IoT Advantage Specialization Partner program and adding Cisco’s solution to our OT cyber security solutions portfolio, has enabled ATS to widen our cyber security strategy playbook and approach the prevailing issue of industrial cyber security issue head-on.

This article is part of ATS’s four-part series highlighting the importance of Cyber Security Month – in previous pieces, we explored best practices in cyber security today and highlighted some of the most notorious cyber crime cases from the past year.

Cyber attacks on small municipal systems and infrastructures have been increasing in the past year, and this is a serious concern as it involves the lives of the people that these public systems serve. Earlier this year, cyber attackers accessed a water treatment plant in Oldsmar, Florida and warnings were out of sight.

ATS is a unit that combines creative technology, products, and services in a balanced synergy that seeks to enrich any organization or company striving for top-notch performance and efficiency in today’s modern age.

We deliver the entire telecom and OT cyber security solutions required for any firm to stay ahead of the industry and the changing times.

ATS is pleased to share that our webinar in partnership with Cisco at our ATS Coffee Break Sessions Series was a huge success. The plan of the webinar included the essential need for operational technology cybersecurity.

ICS/OT cybersecurity is the central topic of CISCO’s new eBook, “OT Cyber Security.”

Some bit of good news in the field of cybersecurity at last – compared to last year’s hectic activity in malware targeting large enterprises and critical infrastructure sites, Q2 of 2021 presented relative calm.

Redoubled efforts to protect industrial operation after the tumultuous 2020, with increases in industry-wide regulations, investigation efforts by law enforcement, and progresses made by cybersecurity solution experts have all delivered significant results.

The natural resources industry is considered one of the most dangerous jobs in the world. The number of potential hazards this field faces on a daily basis requires an extraordinary amount of safety precautions to keep risk on a controllable level.

But – even with the development of highly complex safety measures that are in place today, accidents do occur, and frequently.

In comparison to the IT sector, cybersecurity for operational technology (OT) and industrial control systems (ICS) is considerably weak. The significant reason for this is that the OT systems were not designed for a digitalized world where systems are connected via internet.
Yet the advancement towards Industrial IoT (IIoT) demands secure OT systems and protection for manufacturing processes

Energy companies are evolving as prime targets for threat actors. The growing value of business data, the importance of fuel infrastructure, and the vulnerability of networked systems are a few primary reasons this industry is exposed to malicious hackers.

Oil and gas companies need to start investing in cyber security at the earliest. Otherwise, some of the nation’s most critical infrastructure would be left wide open to future cyber attacks.

In the dynamically shifting state of modern industry, there are a multitude of reasons to protect one’s company, or enhance and strengthen its existing cyber security measures.

As recent cases of malware intrusions on critical infrastructure, such as the Triton attack and the Colonial pipeline case have shown, the need to meet cyber security challenges head on, and further advance existing protection only grows.

With the rise in geopolitical rivalries and disputes, the Middle East faces nation-state-sponsored cyber attacks on infrastructures such as utilities, oil and gas, and transport hubs. Meanwhile, the advancement to cloud services and digital marketing growth is fuelling a terrifying rise in consumer data theft. Critical infrastructure must segregate and defend networks while governments must bring forward new GDPR-style data security.