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GAO Publishes Report, "Cybersecurity: Improvements Needed in Addressing Risks to Operational Technology"
On March 7th, the United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) reported that agencies tasked with helping organizations across critical infrastructure manage operational technology (OT) cybersecurity are woefully understaffed. These findings align with FBI Director Christopher Wray's statements earlier this year that those defending such assets from cyberattack are outmanned 50 to 1 by adversaries.
The GAO report highlighted the growing risks, stating that "OT used by critical infrastructure owners and operators is becoming increasingly vulnerable to cyberattacks. Most notably, OT systems were once largely isolated from internet and business IT systems. However, OT systems are more vulnerable now that they are more frequently connected with business IT systems both within a company and accessible by internet systems globally. Further, older legacy OT systems were not designed with cybersecurity protections because they were not intended to connect to networks such as the internet." Get the full report here.
Do we need more well-trained professionals to help defend this infrastructure? Yes. We also need to take these targets off the table and reduce the attack surface without sacrificing the data flows that help improve operational efficiency and resilience. Fend is here to physically block cyberattacks on both legacy and new networks and OT assets, keeping attackers out while maintaining the flow of key information. Need help? Respond to this email or visit https://www.fend.tech/ot-security to learn more about safely bringing critical systems online.
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