Siemens, and the eight founding Charter of Trust members, welcome The AES Corporation, Atos and Enel to its global cyber-security initiative at the 2018 CERAWeek conference in Houston, Texas. Cyber security is a leading topic of conversation at the conference, as energy is the most attacked segment within U.S. critical infrastructure, according to Siemens.
In 2017, the U.S. Department of Energy reported that America’s electricity infrastructure was in “imminent danger” from cyber attacks that are “growing more frequent and sophisticated.” And, according to a recent report from the Council of Economic Advisors, malicious cyber activity against government and industry cost the U.S. economy between $57 billion and $109 billion in 2016 – approximately one-half of U.S. GDP, says Siemens.
The Charter of Trust is a cyber-security initiative that establishes three primary goals: to protect the data of individuals and businesses; to prevent harm to people, businesses, and infrastructure; and to establish a reliable basis where confidence in a networked, digital world can take root and grow. The Charter of Trust was announced at the Munich Security Conference (MSC) in February, and signed by a group of founding companies, including Airbus, Allianz, Daimler Group, IBM, MSC, NXP, SGS and Deutsche Telekom, who called for binding rules and standards to ensure greater digital security and integrity in both the public and private sectors.
As the number of cyber attacks worldwide continues to grow, the hardware and software that control critical infrastructure like electricity and gas have become high-value targets. A study of the U.S. oil and gas industry by Ponemon Institute found that operational technology (OT) cyber attacks now comprise 30% of all attacks in the U.S. oil and gas industry.
“Protecting our nation’s energy infrastructure is critical to maintaining so much of the American way of life,” says Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska. “It is great to see companies coming together to build trust and strengthen collaborative efforts to protect critical assets in our nation and around the world. Cyber security is a shared responsibility that requires partners at all levels of government and the private sector to address threats and sharpen responses to cyber attacks.”
The new Charter of Trust members include The AES Corporation, a Fortune 200 global power company providing energy distribution and generation in 15 countries; Atos, a digital transformation company operating in 72 countries and supporting clients across various business sectors, including energy and utilities; and Enel, reportedly Europe’s largest power company for market capitalization, operating in more than 30 countries across five continents.
For more information, visit: www.siemens.com
