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Press Release01 July 2020Smart InfrastructureZug/Tallinn
Siemens and NATO CCDCOE advance cooperation on cybersecurity for critical infrastructure
The way grids are operated and managed has changed
fundamentally in the last years with the integration of more renewable and
decentralized energy sources. The need for network optimization, interaction
between prosumers, and the number of new market participants have all
significantly increased. With information and communication technology
penetrating transmission and distribution networks, the growing
interconnections create more vectors for potential attacks on digital energy
grids. Consequently, cybersecurity is a top priority for power system operators
and government bodies.
Since 2010,
Locked Shields is an annual cyber defence exercise organized by NATO CCDCOE to
train cyber response teams to defend against massive cyberattacks. Siemens has
teamed-up with NATO CCDCOE since 2017 to include power grid scenarios into the
defense exercise, which includes systems and products such as the Siemens
Spectrum Power and Sicam A8000 remote terminal units. These help to meet complex energy grid
scenarios with control centers and substations which are interconnected and
interdependent. In the exercise, the defenders have to set the defense lines of
a complex infrastructure including various systems and applications that should
withstand massive cyber-attacks executed by a large group of hackers. Keeping
the lights on while performing threat hunting, reporting attacks and recovering
the system are some of the challenging tasks the cybersecurity experts learn to
deal with in this exercise. Locked Shields is an opportunity to learn through exercise, training and
cooperation within the field of defense cyber operations.
Robert Klaffus, CEO of Siemens Digital
Grid said: “Power grids and everything connected to them form the backbone of
modern societies and are therefore attractive targets for hackers. The learning
and experience with the Locked Shields exercise are essential to securing and
protecting power grids. With the advanced cooperation with NATO CCDCOE, Siemens
can gain valuable insights into new forms of attacks and how to address evolving
cybersecurity challenges in digital energy
grids. These insights are applied to further developments of our portfolio.”
One example of testing new features as
part of this cooperation is the open standard communication protocol OPC UA PUB/SUB, which is
applied to many IoT-applications.
Colonel Jaak Tarien, Director
of the NATO CCDCOE said: “Our long-term cooperation with Siemens in training
the cyber experts to protect critical infrastructure in general and power grids
in particular has been a major asset for the NATO CCDCOE technical cyber
defence exercises. With the aim to reinforce the interaction amongst different
cyber defence stakeholders, to deepen co-operation and exchange of best
practices, this agreement takes our cooperation to a new level. Our societies
rely on strong and resilient critical infrastructure. Accordingly, there is a real value in our partnership to advance
cyber security together with the key industry partners like Siemens Smart
Infrastructure.”
For further information on Siemens Smart
Infrastructure, please see here:
www.siemens.com/smartinfrastructure
For this press release
Siemens Smart Infrastructure (SI) is shaping the market for intelligent, adaptive infrastructure for today and the future. It addresses the pressing challenges of urbanization and climate change by connecting energy systems, buildings and industries. SI provides customers with a comprehensive end-to-end portfolio from a single source – with products, systems, solutions and services from the point of power generation all the way to consumption. With an increasingly digitalized ecosystem, it helps customers thrive and communities progress while contributing toward protecting the planet. SI creates environments that care. Siemens Smart Infrastructure has its global headquarters in Zug, Switzerland, and has around 72,000 employees worldwide.
Siemens AG (Berlin and Munich) is a global technology powerhouse that has stood for engineering excellence, innovation, quality, reliability and internationality for more than 170 years. The company is active around the globe, focusing on the areas of intelligent infrastructure for buildings and distributed energy systems, and automation and digitalization in the process and manufacturing industries. Through the separately managed companies Siemens Energy, the global energy business of Siemens, and Siemens Mobility, a leading supplier of smart mobility solutions for rail and road transport, Siemens is shaping the energy systems of today and tomorrow as well as the world market for passenger and freight services. Due to its majority stakes in the publicly listed companies Siemens Healthineers AG and Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (as part of Siemens Energy), Siemens is also a world-leading supplier of medical technology and digital healthcare services as well as environmentally friendly solutions for onshore and offshore wind power generation. In fiscal 2019, which ended on September 30, 2019, Siemens generated revenue of €86.8 billion and net income of €5.6 billion. At the end of September 2019, the company had around 385,000 employees worldwide. Further information is available on the Internet at
www.siemens.com.
The CCDCOE is a NATO-accredited cyber defence hub focusing on research, training and exercises. It represents a community of 25 nations providing a 360-degree look at cyber defence, with expertise in the areas of technology, strategy, operations and law.
The Centre is staffed and financed by its member nations, currently Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States. Canada, Japan, Croatia, Australia, Luxembourg, Ireland, Montenegro, Slovenia, Switzerland and South Korea are also on the path of joining the Centre.
Contact
Eva-Maria Baumann
Smart Infrastructure
Freyeslebenstr. 1
91058 Erlangen
Germany
91058 Erlangen
Germany
+49 (9131) 17-36620