Critical Infrastructure Protection

OPSWAT Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP) is a crucial aspect of safeguarding the essential systems that underpin a society and its economy. Let’s delve into the details:

1. Definition:
   • Critical Infrastructure: This term refers to assets that are vital for the proper functioning of a region or nation. These assets include energy grids, transportation networks, communication systems, water supply facilities, and more.
   • Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP): It involves preparedness and the ability to respond effectively to serious incidents that impact critical infrastructure. CIP recognizes specific parts of a country’s infrastructure as critical to national and economic security. The goal is to take necessary steps to protect these crucial assets¹.
2. Presidential Directives:
   • In the United States, the Presidential Directive PDD-63 (issued in May 1998) established a national program for Critical Infrastructure Protection. It identified certain systems and assets as vital to the country’s security, economy, public health, and safety.
   • Similarly, in Europe, the European Programme for Critical Infrastructure Protection (EPCIP) outlines measures to safeguard critical infrastructure¹.
3. Sectors of Critical Infrastructure:
   • The U.S. Department of Homeland Security defines 16 sectors as critical infrastructure:
     • Chemicals
     • Commercial Facilities
     • Communications
     • Critical Manufacturing
     • Dams
     • Defense
     • Emergency Services
     • Energy
     • Financial Services
     • Food and Agriculture
     • Government Facilities
     • Healthcare and Public Health
     • Information Technology
     • Nuclear Reactors, Materials, and Waste
     • Transportation Systems
     • Water and Wastewater Systems
   • Each of these sectors plays a vital role in the functioning of society and the economy¹.
4. Requirements and Skills:
   • Given the proliferation of zero-day attacks and the expanding attack surface, cybersecurity professionals must efficiently prioritize their workload.
   • Critical Infrastructure Protection skills include:
     • Creating and maintaining secure data exchange processes between segregated networks.
     • Ensuring proper device posture checks to control access to organization assets and segregated networks.
     • Disarming content that may carry malware from application files or emails.
   • Addressing the cybersecurity skills gap (with up to 3.5 million open cybersecurity jobs worldwide) is crucial to maintaining the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of critical infrastructure¹.

In summary, OPSWAT’s focus on Critical Infrastructure Protection involves providing secure processes for transferring files and devices to and from critical networks, thereby contributing to overall security and resilience.