The most common risks in Operational Technology

What are the Most Common Risks in Operational Technology

In June 2023, while engaged in my regular tasks, I was doing my routine activities and arranging the backup files on the Organization’s common data network. All of a sudden my computer screen got locked and I had no access to my system. The first thing that I can recall was that I immediately removed the Ethernet cable from the CPU LAN card and switched off my computer. I then informed the field IT team about the scenario. It was then handed over to the IT team; after 3~4 days, I was told that there was a locker of Ransomware found on my computer and that the IT team would proceed with the reinstallation of the Windows operating system. I had no option other than to accept this situation and ultimately had to lose all available data on my PC. The bad situation for me was that this was a shared PC and my colleague had to lose his data as well. This event led to a curiosity in me regarding this topic and I have just started exploring this subject. I shall be sharing more posts as the concept gets concrete.

This write-up intends to provide a list of the common cyber security risks to operational technology (OT). These risks can have a huge impact on the business of that organization. 

List of Risks in Operational Technology

1.     Ransom ware
2.     Malware injection
3.     DOS attack (Denial of Service)
4.     Supply chain Attack
5.     Insider
6.     Data Breaches
7.     Zero Day Exploits
8.     MITM attack (A main in the middle)
9.      Phishing
10.    Legacy system outdated technology
11.   Weak access control compliance gaps
12.   No access control compliance
13.   Absence of physical security layer
14. Human error

MALWARE

BlackEnergy (HTTP-based toolkit that created bots to execute DDoS attacks.

BlackEnergy 1, 2,3(BE-3; aims at the DLL component in local app folder; Ukraine power grid cyberattack -2015)