Jane Edwards
Alex Whitworth, sales director at Carahsoft Technology, said the White House and other federal agencies launched several efforts to improve cybersecurity in the electric and utilities sector.
Whitworth wrote in a blog post published Tuesday that the White House introduced a national security memorandum in 2021 as part of efforts to encourage electric utilities to enhance visibility and tracking of critical electricity networks and improve the cybersecurity of operational technology and industrial control systems.
In March, the White House issued a national cybersecurity strategy to establish a secure digital ecosystem.
Whitworth noted that control systems professionals collaborated with the Department of Energy’s cybersecurity, energy security and emergency response, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the National Security Agency to come up with a set of security considerations for ICS to help OT operators and owners improve cyberthreat detection and forensic capabilities.
According to Whitworth, guidelines for ICS/OT cybersecurity evaluation have been introduced. These include securing technology against access credential misuse, using passive deployment and isolation technologies to safeguard sensitive data and developing technology for ICS networks with integration compatibility for ICS communications and protocols.
The Carahsoft executive also mentioned how the Rural and Municipal Utility Advanced Cybersecurity Grant and Technical Assistance Program has helped improve incident response, energy systems and cybersecurity skills in some agencies using authorized funds under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
