Government Energy Policy, Business and Technology

Utilities one of most vulnerable industries as cybersecurity IT/OT threats merge, survey finds

Utility Dive: Data protection isn't often discussed in the context of operational technology. Data breaches are typically incidents in information technology, yet OT holds just as many trade secrets and critical information — it just looks different.

Consider a pharmaceutical plant: Within operations, a controller directs a valve attached to pipe carrying fluid. Attached to the valve is a sensor responsible for the fluid's flow rate. "That flow rate is then sent back to the controller where it is compared to the output that has been programmed by the engineers," said Brian Kime, senior analyst at Forrester, while speaking at a virtual Forrester event in September.

Read article