When we hear the term “critical infrastructure,” we want to believe that the assets – whether they are physical or digital – are extremely secure. Our minds conjure images of the vaults of Fort Knox, which are protected from every angle. However, critical infrastructure of the digital variety is not necessarily any more secure than any other digital asset. It all comes down to how meticulous the organization is in looking for and quickly closing vulnerabilities and security gaps that expose an attack surface for a bad actor to exploit.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) will be releasing a document that provides a roadmap to threat mitigation of Position, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) services, a national critical function powering many of the critical infrastructure sectors that enable modern society. The conformance framework was developed with input from industry stakeholders and will help critical infrastructure owners and operators make risk-informed decisions when deciding what PNT equipment to deploy. It provides distinct levels of resilience so end users can choose equipment that’s appropriate for their needs, based on criticality and risk tolerance.
On November 19 and 20, more than 200 industry and government officials exercised the energy sector’s response and recovery to a Wasatch earthquake during CESER’s Clear Path VIII. This year’s scenario impacted critical energy infrastructure within Utah and the surrounding states with cascading impacts across the Western United States. The regional, all hazards Clear Path Exercise series brings together energy sector partners on an annual basis to update policies and procedures, identify areas for collective improvement, and strengthen relationships and cooperation.
Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, which hosted the Super Bowl LIV, was looking for a solution to protect its critical infrastructure and ensure a consistent experience for fans and spectators.
Acting Secretary of Homeland Security, Chad F. Wolf introduced two new members to the Homeland Security Advisory Council (HSAC): Tom Jenkins and Catherine Lotrionte. Created by President George W. Bush in 2002, the HSAC is a Department of Homeland Security federal advisory committee that provides the secretary with independent, informed recommendations, and advice on a variety of homeland security issues.
Chris Krebs, the director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), said that after the final day of voting and with millions of votes cast, the federal government has "no evidence any foreign adversary was capable of preventing Americans from voting or changing vote tallies."
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T), in partnership with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), has awarded $2 million to the Critical Infrastructure Resilience Institute (CIRI), a DHS Center of Excellence (COE) led by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), to develop a plan that CISA can execute to build a national network of cybersecurity technical institutes.
The National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners Center for Partnerships & Innovation announced the release of the Cybersecurity Tabletop Exercise Guide and Public Utility Commission Participation in GridEx V: A Case Study. These new publications highlight the need for public utility commissions and utilities to coordinate on cybersecurity preparedness efforts.
The National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners Center for Partnerships and Innovation today announced the release of a series of Smart Grid Interoperability Learning Modules.
