When we think of cybersecurity and potential breaches it’s safe to say we’ve moved on from some of the traditional stereotypes.
No longer are we solely focused on savvy hackers taking down Social Media sites or sending out spam emails en masse.
Of course, those issues remain important.
However, our cybersecurity, especially when it involves the engineering sector, has become a far more complex issue.
From power and water supplies to financial institutions, the whole industry is waking up to ever-changing demands of cybersecurity.
The UK authorities and engineering trade bodies are all too familiar with the threats posed by malicious forces.
In reaction to increasing concerns over a cyber attack the UK government opened the National Cyber Security Centre in 2016.
The same year the government pledged to spend £1.9bn over five years on tackling cybersecurity.
More recently, Lord Arbuthnot of Edrom, an adviser to the Electric Infrastructure Security Council, laid bare the consequences of a breach.
He told the Financial Times: “If you take down the electricity network, you very quickly take down everything else as well,” he said. “The vulnerability is real.”
Member states of the European Union have also been busy putting measures in place to guard against cyber attacks.
The 2016 Directive on Security of Network and Information Systems (NIS) was the first piece of pan-European legislation on cybersecurity.
It aims to offer guidance on adopting strategies to deal with threats and encourage cross-border information sharing.
However, there’s another important aspect to the directive. The NIS also tasks EU states with the set-up of computer security incident response team (CSIRT) teams and asks members to define operators of essential services, such as gas, water, electricity and telecoms suppliers.
That’s not always as easy as it sounds. But it’s a vital step in being able to co-ordinate and manage a response to potential cyber criminals.
The rise of the cybersecurity professional
In the face of an ever-growing and changing threat a new hero has come to the rescue: the cybersecurity professional.
Given what we’ve covered above it’s perhaps no surprise to learn that engineering and utility companies are clambering over themselves to get cyber talent onboard.
The constant need to update cyber measures, and in some cases retrofit legacy systems with adequate protection, is creating great demand for experts.
According to The 2017 Global Information Security Workforce Study, European firms are facing a shortage of 350,000 security professionals by 2022.
Where they can be found, the same report detailed how this is often the result of companies using their own networks.
Social and professional networks were listed as the preferred option (48%) followed by the company’s HR department (47%).
Looking to hire cybersecurity analysts or network engineers? Get in touch with me via alexander.hess@bps-world.com to chat about how you’re dealing with threats.