An examination of the security implications of the supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system in a mobile networked environment: An augmented vulnerability tree approach.

摘要

The increasing demand of supervisory control systems connected remotely to criticalinfrastructure and recently the internet, has profiled a high threat level to the security and function ofcontrol system; more especially Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems. It isvery crucial that operators and management are knowledgeable about these threats and get familiarizewith ways to trace and track information required mitigating the threats. In present day verycompetitive markets and with high levels of infrastructural investments, it is of vital importance forcorporations to be up-to-date with their SCADA networks so as to meet the challenges faced byremote and/or mobile access, use and cyber threat posed to the critical systems infrastructures. Wehave examined the security implications of having the SCADA system exposed to the mobile and/orinternet environment. The paper deals with the following issues: Section one looks at types ofinfrastructures and the general functionalities of SCADA and assesses the risks in mobileenvironment. The second section employs some of the recent methodologies applied to the SCADAsystem. Section three reports on some findings from analysis and critically evaluates the risks posedto the system using an augmented vulnerability tree approach. The last section draws from thefindings to re-evaluate, conclude and proposes some solutions on the risk issues of operating SCADAin a mobile networked environment.