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Industrial Cybe
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Disaster Recovery for OT
In the world of operational technology (OT), a resilient disaster recovery (DR) plan is essential. OT environments are unique, relying on both physical and digital infrastructure, real-time operations, and specialized equipment. A disaster– whether caused by natural events, equipment failures, or cyberattacks– can severely impact these systems, leading to safety risks, production downtime and financial losses.
Unplanned downtime costs industrial manufacturers over $250 million annually.
More Than Just a Plan
A well-planned DR plan can mitigate the impact of disruptions, protect critical assets, and ensure business continuity in the wake of a catastrophic event. However, simply having a plan on paper is not enough. To ensure your DR plan’s effectiveness, it must be tested, regularly maintained, and integrated into your organization's overall risk management strategy.
76% of organizations lack a documented and validated Disaster Recovery plan.
Test and Validate
Regular reviews ensure the DR plan is comprehensive, accurate, and in alignment with the organization’s operations and technology. Further, it can illuminate potential gaps or areas for improvement. Methods include:
- Tabletop exercises: Simulated disaster scenarios to test the plan's effectiveness.
- Full-scale drills: Real-world tests involving actual equipment and personnel.
Verify
Verification is the process of testing the backup and recovery systems to ensure functionality is as intended. Elements include:
- Backup verification: Routine testing of backup processes and files to ensure a reliable recovery path.
- Recovery testing: Periodic testing of recovery procedures to ensure systems can be restored quickly and effectively.
- Failover testing: Validate the ability of systems to switch to backup resources in the event of a failure.
Provide Training
Ensure that all relevant personnel, from front-line OT operators to IT staff, are thoroughly trained on their roles and responsibilities in the event of a disaster. This includes understanding the DR plan, knowing how to activate it, and being familiar with the procedures for recovering critical systems and functions.
The Takeaway
A robust Disaster Recovery strategy is not a luxury but a necessity. Remember: it’s not if, but when.
From maintaining safe operations to safeguarding your organization’s reputation to mitigating overall impact, the testing and verification of DR plans is essential to ensure your organization is prepared for challenges that will arise.
Ready to learn more? Contact us today to schedule a no-cost consultation.
We empower our clients to build safe, sustainable operations by delivering comprehensive Operational Technology (OT) solutions. From concept to implementation and beyond– we'll be there every step of the way.
Let's collaborate.
Schedule a no-cost consultation today.
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Disaster Recovery
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Digitalization: The Future of Industry
A global digital revolution is underway, disrupting industries and reshaping our world at an unprecedented pace. The industrial and critical infrastructure sectors are no exception.
What is Digitalization?
Digitalization is the integration of digital technologies to automate processes, optimize workflows, and achieve operational excellence. Gartner describes digitalization as “the process of moving to a digital business.”
This means connecting machines, systems, and people through a digital network to collect, analyze, and utilize data for improved decision-making. Successful digitalization facilitates innovation and creates sustainable value.
Technology and Trends Driving Digitalization
Cybersecurity Enhancements
With the increasing connectivity of OT systems, cybersecurity measures have become critical to protect against cyber threats.
Impact: Advanced cybersecurity solutions, such as anomaly detection and threat intelligence, help secure OT environments from attacks like ransomware and other forms of cyber intrusion.
Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT)
Integration of sensors, devices, and machinery with internet connectivity, enabling the collection and analysis of real-time data.
Impact: IIoT enhances operational efficiency, predictive maintenance, and real-time monitoring, allowing companies to optimize processes and reduce downtime.
Edge Computing
Edge computing processes data closer to the source (i.e., at the edge of the network) rather than relying on centralized cloud computing.
Impact: Reduces latency and enables real-time decision-making for more reliable and secure data processing in OT environments.
Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML)
AI and ML technologies analyze vast amounts of data to identify patterns, make predictions, and automate decision-making processes.
Impact: AI/ML drives advancements in predictive maintenance, quality control, and process automation, leading to more efficient and reliable operations.
Advanced Data Analytics
Data analytics tools process and analyze large volumes of operational data to provide insights and support decision-making.
Impact: These tools improve operational efficiency, reduce waste, and help in the identification of trends and potential issues before they become critical.
What’s Next in Digitalization
The future of digitalization holds boundless potential for innovation and growth in OT environments driven by the convergence of IT and OT. Enhanced data analytics and the integration of cyber-physical systems, along with a focus on sustainability, will lead to more autonomous, efficient, and secure operations, further enhancing the resilience and adaptability of OT environments.
By harnessing the power of emerging digital technologies, businesses can achieve significant improvements in efficiency, productivity, and competitiveness with those embracing digitalization leading the way.
Ready to learn more? Contact us today to schedule a no-cost consultation.
We empower our clients to build safe, sustainable operations by delivering comprehensive Operational Technology (OT) solutions. From concept to implementation and beyond– we'll be there every step of the way.
Let's collaborate.
Schedule a no-cost consultation today.
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Digital Transformation
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Critical Infrastructure
Water and Wastewater
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AI and ML: Revolutionizing Cybersecurity
The digital threat landscape can be a battlefield. Hackers’ tactics are constantly evolving, and traditional security measures often struggle to keep up. Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) are powerful allies in the fight for resilience. From predictive analytics to response and mitigation, this post will explore how these technologies can bolster cybersecurity strategies.
The Evolution of Proactive Defense
Vulnerability management assessment (VMA) and penetration testing (pen testing) are critical to a proactive cybersecurity strategy. The traditional reliance on manual scans and analysis meant these processes were slow and tedious. AI and ML are changing that.
With the ability to quickly analyze vast amounts of data, AI and ML enable accurate threat prediction, prioritization, and mitigation. These models can continuously learn and adapt to new threat intelligence and dynamically respond to the rapidly evolving threat landscape.
Behavioral Intelligence
Today’s cybersecurity measures must account for the rise in interconnected systems and devices and the new opportunities to exploit human fallibility inside this environment. Focusing on external threats alone isn’t an option.
User Entity and Behavior Analytics (UEBA) leverages AI and ML to identify a broader range of threats– such as inside actors, social engineering, and brute-force attacks. By continuously analyzing user behavior patterns, anomalous activity detection is honed and accelerated– allowing for more informed preventative action and enforcement of regulatory compliance.
Answering Alert Fatigue
Teams are often bombarded with cybersecurity alerts– many of which can be false positives– leading to alert fatigue, wasted resources, and delays in addressing critical threats. These delays can trigger cascading security breaches. AI and ML can streamline this process by filtering out false positives, automating threat responses, and highlighting the most critical threats.
Automated responses can address low-risk alerts, block malicious access attempts, and quarantine compromised devices or networks. These measures can minimize the damage of cyberattacks and enable human experts to focus on higher level initiatives and high-priority incidents.
The Takeaway
The future of cybersecurity is inextricably intertwined with AI and ML. As these technologies continue to evolve, so too will their ability to detect, prevent, and respond to cyber threats. Empowered by AI and ML, security teams can proactively safeguard systems today and prepare for the ever-evolving threat landscape of tomorrow.
Ready to learn more? Contact us today to schedule a no-cost consultation.
We empower our clients to build safe, sustainable operations by delivering comprehensive Operational Technology (OT) solutions. From concept to implementation and beyond– we'll be there every step of the way.
Let's collaborate.
Schedule a no-cost consultation today.
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Industrial Cybe
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Critical Infrastructure
Transportation
Blog
Why OT Cybersecurity Can’t Wait
The industrial landscape is evolving. The industrial internet of things (IIoT), artificial intelligence (AI), and advanced data analytics are unlocking new levels of efficiency and productivity. They’re also introducing a new, complex set of challenges for operational technology (OT) cybersecurity. Cyberattacks are becoming more sophisticated, targeting everything from power grids to water treatment facilities.
It's no longer a question of “if” but “when.” Let’s look at some common hurdles to prioritizing OT cybersecurity and explore how a partnership with Champion can help.
Challenges
"Implementing new security measures will disrupt operations or lead to excessive downtime."
By working collaboratively with your team to understand your processes and needs, we will develop a phased approach that integrates seamlessly and minimizes disruption. Ongoing support from our team will bring continuity from implementation to maintenance, ensuring smooth operation.
"Our legacy systems aren’t compatible with modern security tech."
We understand the challenges of securing legacy systems. Our team employs a layered security approach– including network segmentation and access control– to strategically mitigate risk.
"We don’t have the time or resources to design, implement or maintain new cybersecurity measures."
The global cybersecurity talent gap makes building and keeping a top-tier in-house team a constant uphill battle. Partnering with a dedicated solution provider like Champion offers a scalable solution. From meeting compliance standards to implementing cutting-edge tech and innovative strategies, our expert team has you covered.
"Cybersecurity solutions seem expensive, and the return on investment (ROI) isn't always clear."
The cost of a successful cyber attack can be astronomical– encompassing operational disruption, financial loss, and enduring reputational damage.
Recovering a single GB of data from a ransomware attack cost an average of $53,000 in 2023.*
Our risk-based approach and tailored solutions provide measurable improvement in your security posture and maximize your ROI.
The Takeaway
Industrial organizations can no longer afford to overlook cybersecurity. With the ever-evolving threat landscape, a robust security posture is essential for protecting critical infrastructure, ensuring operational continuity, and safeguarding valuable data. Our team is here to keep your operations running safely and securely so you can focus on what you do best.
Ready to learn more? Contact us today to schedule a no-cost consultation.
We empower our clients to build safe, sustainable operations by delivering comprehensive Operational Technology (OT) solutions. From concept to implementation and beyond– we'll be there every step of the way.
*The Global OT & IoT Threat Landscape Assessment and Analysis Report, Sectrio, 2024
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Asset Management
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Securing Legacy OT Systems
Legacy operational technology (OT) systems are still heavily relied on by much of the industrial and critical infrastructure sectors. As digital transformation becomes the new norm, these legacy systems present complex challenges to implementing vital cybersecurity measures.
The Challenge
Legacy systems may include components that are decades old– meaning their designs never accounted for modern cyberthreats and the implications of digital convergence.
As these systems reach end-of-life (EOL), lack of updates and patches, discontinuation of vendor support, and incompatibilities with emerging tech compound the risk of critical disruption.
Best Practice Solutions
Network Segmentation
By isolating critical systems, you can reduce the spread of cyberattacks and limit the potential impact of security breaches.
Cybersecurity Audits
Regular reviews of cybersecurity policies and controls can identify vulnerabilities, ensure regulatory compliance, and uncover inefficiencies.
Access Control
Enforcing strong authentication, authorization, and accountability mechanisms ensure only the necessary personnel have access to critical systems.
Incident Response Planning
Developing and routinely testing an incident response plan enables the efficient identification and mitigation of cyber incidents.
The Takeaway
Integrating new tech into legacy OT systems can seem daunting, but with an informed understanding of the risks and a commitment to implementing best practices, you can protect your organization’s critical systems and stay competitive in the digital age of industry.
Ready to learn more? Contact us today to schedule a no-cost consultation.
We empower our clients to build safe, sustainable operations by delivering comprehensive Operational Technology (OT) solutions. From concept to implementation and beyond– we'll be there every step of the way.
Let's collaborate.
Schedule a no-cost consultation today.
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Disaster Recovery
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Critical Infrastructure
Food and Agriculture
Critical Infrastructure
Manufacturing
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