Gas firm defends SCADA network

摘要

A large medical-grade gas firm is installing intrusion-prevention systems to circumvent security problems that the government fears are a menace to power utilities and other essential industries. Air Liquide Large Industries, a $323 million company with 4,500 users, will be able to segment its Internet-exposed business network from its supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) network - the network that monitors and controls devices that run its industrial infrastructure - when it finishes deploying Top Layer Networks' IPS boxes to the company's 130 U.S. plants, says Charles Neely Harper, director of national supply and pipeline operations for the facilities.The IPS gear tackles a problem that looms over power, chemical, petroleum and other plants that rely on SCADA networks - namely that these networks are vulnerable to cyberattacks because they are connected to corporate networks with Internet access. The U.S. Departments of Energy and Homeland Security have demanded policies that deal with protecting SCADA networks, but the problem has largely not been dealt with. Earlier this year, for example, a security expert speaking at the RSA Conference in San Francisco recounted performing a penetration test at a power utility network during which he cracked the network using elementary social manipulation and drive-by malware downloads.