Digital transformation can be a double-edged sword for mining companies. On one hand, it can improve operations, cut costs and reduce danger to miners. On the other hand, it can introduce risks that turn those improvements on their ears.
This often causes cybersecurity managers to object to digital innovation, warning companies that they are opening themselves up to unacceptable cybersecurity risks by introducing new technology. But it does not have to be that way; when properly managed, cybersecurity can be a business enabler.
“Digital transformation is supercharging efficiency in the mining sector, but it’s also widening the attack surface—the number of opportunities for cybercriminals to access a company’s internal systems—in the process,” noted Matt Breuillac, managing director at Perth, Australia-based Cyber Node. “As mining companies embrace cloud-based analytics, Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and remote operations, they’re also connecting OT [operational technology] and IT [information technology] environments more tightly than ever. In doing so, they’re exposing themselves to new classes of threats,…
