OT Cybersecurity Assessments – Which is Right For You?
May 15, 2024
By Maria Else, Sr. Global Product Manager, Cybersecurity Services, Rockwell Automation
The adoption of smart manufacturing is spreading at a rapid pace. With the introduction and implementation of new technologies like artificial intelligence, machine learning, and the Industrial Internet of Things, technology is taking manufacturing to a place it’s never been before. With the increased connectivity comes increased cyber risk. Threat actors are evolving and advancing their techniques for infiltrating OT networks, and according to the Rockwell Automation State of Smart Manufacturing report, 71% of all ransomware attacks on industrial organizations are focused on manufacturing.
The constantly evolving threat landscape requires industrial organizations to implement robust security measures and adequately assess their internal and external environments through comprehensive assessments. Before conducting an assessment, it is important to understand what an assessment is, the various types of assessments that are available, the benefits of each, and what value and outcome they provide.
You can’t protect what you can’t see. Lack of visibility is a challenge across all industries, specifically manufacturing, as many OT networks are riddled with legacy equipment across multiple segmented networks. Assessments can help organizations gain critical insights into their manufacturing processes, connected assets, and the relative cyber risks they pose. Network visibility helps lay the foundation for a successful OT cyber journey that can help industrials maintain uptime, mitigate risk, and secure operations.
What is a Cybersecurity Assessment?
A cybersecurity assessment is the process of evaluating security controls to examine the organization’s overall security posture. Assessments can include tactics such as validating the preparedness against unknown vulnerabilities, attack vectors, etc. to help track systems, applications, and network flaws, implement defensive controls, and keep policies up to date. The overall goal of cybersecurity assessments is to help organizations understand the assets within their manufacturing space and the associated vulnerabilities. A cyber assessment serves as the foundation for an OT security journey by creating visibility across the enterprise.
Cybersecurity assessments can range in scope depending on the organization’s objectives, size, and compliance standards. Defining your assessment goals and requirements ahead of time can help select an assessment that is appropriate for your organization, and to create the most appropriate cyber roadmap, prioritizing unique concerns and how to resolve them.
All assessments, whether entry-level, or full-scope, evaluate the current networks, assets, and related vulnerabilities. Assessments also analyze compliance, identify the attack surface, evaluate cyber resiliency, identify potential threats to the assets as well as understanding an organization’s behaviors and risk tolerance. While it is possible to conduct a cyber assessment internally, working with a third-party like Rockwell Automation will allow manufacturers to lean into the expertise of an established industrial automation organization. A third-party also provides a global scope, helping secure operations according to various industries, regulations, requirements, and demands with a custom, enterprise-focused approach.
Different Types of Cybersecurity Assessments
- Vulnerability Assessment – A first step to understanding the vulnerabilities associated with connected assets. The vulnerability assessment is a cost-effective, automated process that is completed with a limited scope to identify security anomalies/flaw that are present within assets. This assessment lays the foundation for immediate action to start securing OT networks.
- Risk Assessment – A process of mapping risks and threats on the vulnerabilities identified through penetration and vulnerability assessments. A risk assessment identifies the risks for people, processes, and procedures against industry standards such as IEC62443 and NIST Cybersecurity Framework This assessment will help verify security measures and safeguard the internal and external environments against threats. Risk assessments will help organizations plan for additional measures to increase overall security ratings.
- Third-party Risk Assessment – These assessments are used to quantify the associated risks that a manufacturer’s third-party can impose when bringing equipment and solutions into their environment.
- Penetration Testing – Pen testing is an in-depth method of exploiting vulnerabilities to test and organization’s security posture through the attacker’s perspective. This is a proactive approach to identify gaps and to help meet compliance and regulatory requirements. Awareness of security gaps allows manufacturers to plan and execute remediation measures and adopt new security controls.
- Red Team Assessment – This is a step beyond penetration testing and is a full-scale attack that involves simulation of cyberattacks on OT environments. This assessment helps a manufacturer audit their defense capabilities in real time.
- Incident Response Readiness Assessment – These are done to evaluate how well an organization is prepared to combat a cyberattack and depreciate the damage. Incident response readiness assessments are done by a third-party to evaluate the organization’s preparedness and security measures.
- Tabletop Exercises (TTX) – This is a theoretical cyber assessment meant to evaluate how different personas response within the organization, and more specifically the security team, in the event of a cyberattack. TTX work by conducting various realistic risk and security incident scenarios allowing the organization to develop, or amend, their incident response plans and training needs accordingly.
No matter where you are on your OT cybersecurity journey, an assessment can help manufacturers take the next steps to secure their operations or validate their existing measures in place against the latest threats. Rockwell Automation has the tools and expertise to help identify and execute a cybersecurity assessment aligned with each unique risk tolerance and budget. The Rockwell Automation cybersecurity team is prepared to meet organizations where they’re at, supporting the entire portfolio of assessments listed above. Contact a cybersecurity specialist to learn more about OT cybersecurity assessments and how to choose the right one for you.
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