New Tech Designed to Protect Infrastructure Against Hackers

With reports of breaches of the nations’ critical infrastructure on the rise, Sierra Nevada Corp. (“SNC”), a systems integrator and electronic systems provider, has partnered with the City of Fort Morgan in Colorado to protect the city’s infrastructure from cyber-attacks.  The Binary Armor® SCADA protection system was integrated into the city’s electrical network, and is now fully operational at electric substations and city offices.  According to SNC’s press release, the new protection system is designed to “prevent remote, electronic infiltration of public utility systems.”  The press release further stated that a city official believes that this system will protect against unauthorized intrusion of computer networks connected to the city’s electrical system, especially with the changing trends and the emerging technology that could pose potential harms to the city’s infrastructure.

The fact that our nation’s critical infrastructure is at risk is not novel.  Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition systems, more commonly known as SCADA, are the computer systems that control critical infrastructure, from water distribution and electric grids all the way to nuclear power plants.  According to the press release, although SCADA systems are widely used for managing infrastructure systems, they remain vulnerable to breach.  In fact, in 2011, hackers destroyed a pump after remotely accessing the control system of a city water utility in Springfield, Illinois.  This was closely followed by an Information Age article reporting that the FBI announced that hackers accessed the SCADA systems of three American cities.

Early this month, the Department of Homeland Security reported that a destructive computer malware program called “BlackEnergy” had infected software integral to the nation’s industrial processes, including water distribution networks and electrical grids.  More recently, KTVU News reported that the FBI warned that cyber-attacks on key infrastructure will likely result if a grand jury fails to indict a police officer accused of shooting 18 year old Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri in August.  As early as 2011, when EWeek reported on the Springfield breach, SCADA systems have been generally recognized as easy targets, either because companies are using outdated software or insecure applications.  However, the installation of a protection system that provide, as the press release reports, “customized, in-line protection” for SCADA networks, will likely reduce the risks of breach.