SPAIN - At the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Hitachi Energy, Deutsche Telekom and Securitas announced a joint effort to protect energy suppliers from cyberattacks.

Because of the rising digitalization, the energy sector has become one of the top-three targets for cybercriminals worldwide, said Telekom in a media release.

The energy industry represents the most critical of infrastructure. Targeted attacks on pipelines, power plants or substations are on the rise. Examples include Colonial Pipeline in the USA and the Danish wind turbine manufacturer Vestas. In Brazil, hackers targeted the nuclear branch of Eletrobras. In 2015 and 2016, hackers had sabotaged power supplies in Ukraine, highlighting the impact of such attacks for the first time. More than 700,000 households were without power for hours.

Securing critical infrastructures requires an overarching understanding of operational technology (OT), information technology (IT) and physical security. Apart from cyber security, physical security is needed for plants in the energy sector. This is especially true for remote distribution stations, pumping stations and high-voltage pylons. Hackers can target control cabinets and attack from the inside. In such cases, network firewalls cannot offer enough protection.

A team of experts from Telekom Security, Hitachi Energy and Securitas has developed an overarching approach in recent years. This combines physical protection with enterprise network and digital operational technology security. It enables critical infrastructures to meet protection and regulatory challenges, Telekom said in a media release.

As they announced at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on February 16, the companies are committed to solving the security issues that threaten energy suppliers and end-users worldwide.

Source: Deutsche Telekom