Most cyber security professionals take for granted the information technology or IT nature of their work. That is, when designing cyber protections for some target infrastructure, it is generally presumed that protections are required for software running on computers and networks. The question of whether some system is digital or even computerized would seem to have been last relevant to ask in 1970. We all presume that everything is software on CPUs.
The problem is that not everything is software that CPUs control. Cars include mechanical parts that can get only so hot; airplanes have wings that can bend only so far; factories include assembly lines that can go only so fast; and power plants include fluid piping that can only handle so much. These tangible entities consist of solids, liquids, and gases, rather than 1’s and 0’s, so their management requires a different type of component called an industrial control system or ICS.
The supporting ecosystem that enables industrial control is referred to collectively as operational technology or OT, and this introduces a new set of cyber security concerns. OT protection is particularly intense, because the physical…
