Organization for Cyber Security and Infrastructure Protection
The infrastructure that ensures our safety and connectivity is vulnerable to cyberattacks. Power plants, highways, public transportation, telephone networks, and more all fall under this category. CISA is in the vanguard of the nationwide effort to fortify the nation’s vital infrastructure as the nation’s primary cybersecurity and infrastructure security agency. It also makes an effort to educate and enlist top-notch individuals in the field of cybersecurity.
Several commonplace actions would not be possible without the electric grid. U.S. residents, corporations, and government institutions can all get their power from them.
There are many ways in which cyberattacks can damage power grids, from direct attacks to unintended compromises. Aside from that, they can trigger power outages that are bad enough to hurt people, companies, and infrastructure.
The Department of Energy (DOE) has made it a priority to strengthen cybersecurity readiness and coordinate incident response and recovery in order to counter these dangers. And it has boosted efforts to fortify the reliability of electricity distribution infrastructure.
Nonetheless, despite its importance, the energy grid in the United States is still susceptible to cyberattacks. More and more of its OT, or operational technology, is linked to networks that provide hackers access to the grid.
Providing hydroelectric power, river navigation, water supply, wildlife habitat, waste management, flood control, and recreation, dams and levees are essential parts of the country’s infrastructure. Significant environmental, economic, and public safety harm can result from the collapse of a dam or levee.
Cyberattacks are just one of several potential dangers to dams. They’ve been used for everything from disrupting services to killing people.
Hacking into industrial control systems or compromising unprotected network infrastructure are two examples of the many methods that can be used to carry out such assaults. It’s not always easy to foresee or stop them.
Owners and design engineers can gain a better understanding of potential threat vectors to their dams through routine coordination and emergency exercises with local, state, and federal emergency management partners. They can also lend a hand in creating safety measures that are tailor-made to minimize vulnerability.
To put it simply, the internet is a worldwide computer network that enables devices to exchange data and interact with one another. To communicate, do business, and shop are all made easier with it, making it an indispensable component of today’s world.
When it comes to protecting and better protecting the internet, the Department of Homeland Security’s Computer and Information Security Agency (CISA) is where things get done. It achieves this goal by lending a hand to both the public and private sectors in the areas of cybersecurity tool provision, threat analysis, and incident response.
Changes in cybersecurity threats need the development of novel countermeasures. This emphasizes the importance of the organization maintaining an up-to-date set of policies and procedures.
Thus, CISA has released a number of tools to assist in the detection of threats and the provision of countermeasures. One of these is the Automatic Indicator Sharing (AIS) system, which enables private companies and government agencies to share vital information shortly after an incursion has been spotted.
There are millions of individuals and organizations that make up the emergency services industry, all of which work together to offer prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery. Private resources, such as those provided by fire departments and security firms, are also included.
One of the greatest dangers facing the ESS today is cybercrime. The proliferation of sophisticated means of communication also brings with it a corresponding increase in potential weaknesses.
CISA provides the ESS with a number of programs to aid in risk management and data sharing. One such initiative is the Emergency Services Sector Cybersecurity Initiative, which provides a roadmap for implementing various measures to strengthen ESS cybersecurity.
There has been an increase in the number of volunteers for the Cyber Response Team (CRT), Wisconsin’s statewide cyber resource, since 2015. WEM is in charge of the team today, and it assigns CRT members according to their specific areas of competence. Advisors in cyber security are also provided by WEM staff.
