Smart Cities Cyber Security
Protect traffic management, utilities, and water systems exposed by increased connectivity
The huge impact of a Smart Cities cyber attack
The cost of cyber attacks is not only financial. In 2021, a cyber attack on a water treatment plant nearly poisoned a small city of 15,000 people in Florida. In 2020, an attack disabled computer systems at Düsseldorf University Hospital, with a patient dying while doctors attempted to transfer her to another hospital. In 2018, a cyber attack on public computer systems in Atlanta shut down many of the city’s functions, some for months, costing over $10 million.
Smart buildings may be at much greater risk of cyber attack than originally thought, based on the findings of a report from Kaspersky. The report analysed 40,000 smart buildings worldwide, and found that nearly 4 in 10 (37.8%) of these buildings had been affected by a malicious cyber attack. The majority of these cyber attacks were not “targeted” or “directed” specifically at the smart building computer systems. Instead, it was typically the case that ordinary malware infecting windows based PCs, some of which happened to be controlling the building.
Kaspersky
Smart Cities Security Needs
Modern information and communication technologies, advanced buildings, utilities and infrastructure, transportation and traffic management, are all components found within Smart Cities.
Smart Cities have become essential for the long term strategy of population support, and attempt to address challenges such as urbanisation, high population growth, safety, limited resources and climate change.
Digitalisation and the increasing connection between information systems and operational systems is bringing new vulnerabilities. With Smart City operational systems interwoven with our everyday lives, the security around this technology is crucial. As cyber attacks increase in complexity and number, so does your need for a Cyber Security Platform designed for Operation Technology (OT).
Operational Technology (0T)
Smart cities use an array of technology and communication standards, in an interconnected world of hard wired and wireless networks. Bluetooth, WIFI, ZigBee, Z-Wave, LoraWAN, and NFC are just some of the IOT communication protocols commonly used across devices produced by thousands of different companies.
As cities become increasingly connected, cyber security can no longer be an afterthought. A principle of Security by Design needs to be a foundation at the start of any smart city project. Especially when devices are responsible for our safety, or integral in utilities.
Generic security products can be used to gather high-level production data, monitor general activity, and protect information system, but alone have limited ability to protect the physical operational equipment.
Smart City Security Platform
Fundamentals First have taken an industry standard, Operational Technology platform and combined it with an enterprise Security Operations Centre (SOC). Not only can we offer you state of the art protection within your operational technology, but we can also patch, safeguard, and proactively hunt security issues across your desktop, server and network estate.
Put yourself in control, with a single pane of glass service that protects both your information technology and operational technology in one.
“Develop an integrated security strategy across IT, OT and Risk teams.”
“Complex and high impact cyber attacks which target operational industries are increasing exponentially. Many styles of Operational Technology cyber attacks are being seen, from malware attacks targeting safety systems, to ransomware locking companies out of their core IT systems. Focus on a holistic approach that covers general controls, enterprise architecture, enterprise risk management, IT service management, physical security, IT security, and OT security.”
Fundamentals First
CPNI Security Approach
The CPNI (Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure) recongnises cyber security as a significant topic, publishing the Smart Cities Specification for Establishing and Implementing a Security-Minded Approach.
The security-minded approach developed within a smart city needs to respond to the vulnerabilities created by changes to more traditional ways of working, and the range of threats that may seek to exploit them, without preventing delivery of the smart city’s aims.
The approach highlights the need for specific operational technology security, implementing protective measures for equipment handling city data. With the first integrated cyber-protection platform for complete visibility, segmentation, protection, and monitoring; the securing of city infrastructure becomes one-step more assured.
Operational Technology Cyber Security Platform Benefits
Visibility
Segmentation
Protection
Security Expertise
24×7 Remote OT Monitoring
Industrial Strength
In 2018, researchers from the University of Michigan demonstrated to the U.S. Department of Transportation how they could fool an Intelligent Traffic Signal (I-SIG) system into making incorrect traffic decisions. Creating fake levels of traffic by hacking and sending spurious amount of communications from vehicle-side devices, allowed the researchers to trick the core algorithm into believing their were ghost traffic jams. As a result, a typical half-minute urban trip could take over seven minutes, for no reason.
University of Michigan
Get In Touch
Smart Cities offering so many potential attack opportunities. As a result, appropriate Operational Technology cyber security is a must, not a nice to have.
To help you discover your level of risk, and to illustrate return on investment, we offer you a free consultation. Based on the consultation, a set of recommendations will be presented.
We help businesses of all sizes release their potential
Get in touch and we’ll advise how we can help.
