Lancope to present webinar on SCADA security

Lancope Inc., innovator in network visibility and security intelligence, will deliver a complimentary webinar on techniques for improving SCADA system security on Tuesday, 15 July at 10:00 a.m. US Eastern Daylight Time / 3:00 p.m. UK British Summer Time.

Lancope’s Director of Security Research, Tom Cross, will discuss the inherent security risks associated with SCADA systems, real-world attacks against industrial control systems and best practices for improving the current state of SCADA security.

“Industrial control technologies were largely built on proprietary systems never meant to be connected to the Internet,” said Cross. “Additionally, conventional security solutions can introduce too much downtime or interfere with the correct operation of SCADA systems. In combination, these issues pose a significant challenge to control systems security – one which requires advanced strategies and technologies to correct.”

As part of the webinar, Cross will discuss:

• The state of control systems security vulnerabilities.
• Real-world attack activity that is prompting action.
• The unique, long-term challenges associated with protecting SCADA networks.
• How anomaly detection can play a key role in protecting SCADA systems now.

The good news regarding SCADA networks is that they are extremely easy to baseline, and can therefore benefit greatly from anomaly detection technologies.

SCADA operators can leverage NetFlow through technologies such as Lancope’s StealthWatch® System to baseline normal network activity and quickly identify anomalous behaviours that could signify an issue. Since NetFlow is already inherent within the network, organisations can simply turn it on without having to make any changes to their systems, and can monitor the network for security issues without running the risk of interfering with the critical operations of the control system.

“Many SCADA operators would still like to believe that their systems are not connected to the Internet, but this is simply not the case,” said Cross. “A multitude of vulnerability assessments and real-world attacks have proven otherwise. Due to the far-reaching catastrophes that can arise from attacks on energy and utilities systems, SCADA security is of utmost importance when it comes to critical infrastructure protection, and the protection of nations as a whole. It is not something that can continue to be ignored.”

Evolving industry regulations such as NERC CIP and FISMA/NIST are also forcing critical infrastructure providers to take a closer look at their security procedures to meet tougher compliance requirements.

To register for the complimentary webinar, “SCADA Security: The Five Stages of Cyber Grief,” go to: http://www.lancope.com/company-overview/webinar/scada-security/

Further information on SCADA security can be found at: http://www.lancope.com/solutions/compliance/scada/

Edited from source by Elizabeth Corner

Read the article online at: https://www.worldpipelines.com/business-news/09072014/lancope_to_present_webinar_on_scada_security/