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.

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.

It is vital to put in place a security plan to protect your company’s Industrial Control Systems (ICS) and Operational Technology (OT) database systems and prevent ransomware attacks that has been increasing in occurences in the past 2 years.

A study done in 2014 by ARC called “The Future of Industrial Cyber Security”, highlighted the need for a developed security plan for organizations.

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.

With the massive increase of cyber crimes in the OT space, the cabinets of UAE and other selected countries in the Middle East region (Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar among others) are concerned about securing the cyber infrastructure and protecting the data from cyber criminals.

Middle East governments are acutely aware of the new threat landscape of digitization.

The emergence of intelligent devices and the Internet of Things (IoT) is altering industrial control system (ICS) networks, enhancing usability, efficiency, and productivity in ICS environments while also having a substantial impact on ICS security.

What is an ICS (Industrial Control System)?

Industrial control systems (ICS) are essential components

Over the last decade, cyber-attacks on Operational Technology have increased in frequency and scale. Cyber attackers and online criminal squads have used cyberterrorism to disrupt corporations and critical infrastructure globally. Today, they are becoming even more fierce and are utilizing their resources to target Operations Technology (OT) and Industrial Control System (ICS) networks to harm humans.

ATS is a company that combines innovative technology, products, and services in a well-balanced synergy to enhance any organization or firm seeking top-tier performance and efficiency in today’s modern generation.

Integrating technology into the energy industry is critical for increasing operational efficiencies throughout the value chain.

Operational Technology (OT) is hardware and software that detects or causes changes by directly monitoring and controlling industrial equipments, assets, processes, and events. It incorporates a comprehensive range of programmable systems or devices interacting with the physical environment.

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.”

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.