December 2021

We must first look at the acronyms to understand this question. OT stands for Operational Technology; in other words, the technical components that make up the day to day operations of a facility or process. ICS mean Industrial Control Systems while SCADA is Supervisory, Control and Data Acquisition. Therefore, OT ICS SCADA is the term

Typical OT Devices include distributed control systems (DCSs), programmable logic controllers (PLCs), supervisory control and data acquisition systems (SCADA), safety instrumented systems (SIS), process instrumentation, computers, network switches and firewalls among others.

SCADA is an acronym describing components that interface with the process or manufacturing controls for an organization.  Systems architecture components associated include computers, networks, communication interfaces, graphical user interfaces (GUI), distributed and programable logic controllers as well as associated software and data.

While IT and OT networks and operations have merged over the years, each cannot be treated in the same fashion. The CIA Triad commonly utilized to define IT cybersecurity data controls for confidentiality, integrity, and accessibility must be inverted to place accessibility first within OT environments.  Not doing so can have damaging or unsafe effects.

The best OT Cybersecurity program is one where a partnership is built between in-house personnel and outside experts versed both in OT Cybersecurity and your facility.  This provides an ideal situation where intimate knowledge of your operations is merged with experts in your business sector to best address cybersecurity concerns.

The Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has identified 16 sectors that form our critical infrastructure including energy, chemicals, healthcare, and critical manufacturing among others.  Each of these constitute the baseline business segments that need OT Cybersecurity.