The technology group Wärtsilä is among the founding members of a new alliance to provide a technical and organizational framework for safe and secure operational technology. The Operational Technology Cyber Security Alliance (OTCSA) aims to bridge dangerous gaps in security for operational technology and industrial control systems, the company said in its release.
Operational technology (OT) encompasses the hardware and software used to control physical systems such as machinery in factories, power stations, ships or ports. The Internet of Things (IoT) and interconnectedness of production systems in smart factories means that there is a significantly and rapidly growing risk of serious security breaches in these environments.
Other founding members in the OTCSA are ABB, Check Point Software, BlackBerry Cylance, Forescout, Fortinet, Microsoft, Mocana, NCC Group, Qualys, SCADAFence and Splunk. As cyber-attacks on OT and critical infrastructures increase rapidly year upon year, no company can fight this battle in isolation.
The OTCSA is providing tangible architectural, implementation, and process guidelines to OT operators and solution providers. These robust security guidelines will cover the entire lifecycle - procurement, development, deployment, installation, operation, maintenance and decommission - and address aspects related to people, process, and technology.
For Wärtsilä, building-up secure OT environments is especially timely now during the process of creating the Smart Technology Hub, a new centre of research, product development and production, at Vaasa, Finland.
The OTCSA mission:
Strengthen cyber-physical risk posture of OT environments and interfaces for OT/IT interconnectivity
Guide OT operators on how to protect their OT infrastructure based on a risk management process and reference architectures/designs which are demonstrably compliant with regulations and international standards such as IEC 62443
Guide OT suppliers on secure OT system architectures, relevant interfaces and security functionalities
Support the procurement, development, installation, operation, maintenance, and implementation of a safer, more secure critical infrastructure
Accelerate the time to adoption of safer, more secure critical infrastructures
Wärtsilä in brief
Wärtsilä is a global leader in smart technologies and complete lifecycle solutions for the marine and energy markets. By emphasising sustainable innovation, total efficiency and data analytics, Wärtsilä maximises the environmental and economic performance of the vessels and power plants of its customers. In 2018, Wärtsilä's net sales totalled EUR 5.2 billion with approximately 19,000 employees. The company has operations in over 200 locations in more than 80 countries around the world. Wärtsilä is listed on Nasdaq Helsinki.
Operational Technology Cyber Security Alliance (OTCSA) is a group of global industry-leading organizations focused on providing operational technology (OT) operators with resources and guidance to mitigate their cyber risk in an evolving world. Founded in 2019, OTCSA is the first group of its kind to architect a technical and organizational framework – the who, what and how – for safe and secure OT. Membership is open to all OT operators and solution providers. Current members include ABB, Check Point Software, BlackBerry Cylance, Forescout, Fortinet, Microsoft, Mocana, NCC Group, Qualys, SCADAFence, Splunk and Wärtsilä.