The systems that run power, water, transport, communications and other essential services were once isolated and mechanical. Today they are connected, digital and efficient, and that same connectivity has made them a target. Protecting critical national infrastructure from cyber threats is now a matter of national resilience.
Why it is uniquely challenging
- Operational systems not originally designed for security
- The severe consequences of disruption to essential services
- Long equipment lifecycles that resist frequent change
- The convergence of physical and cyber risk
Resilience as the goal
Because these systems cannot simply be switched off and rebuilt, the aim is resilience: reducing the chance of a successful attack, limiting its spread, and ensuring essential services can be maintained or quickly restored if one occurs.
Physical and cyber together
Critical infrastructure security spans both the physical and the cyber, and the two increasingly merge. Protecting it well means addressing them together, with systems and governance designed as one, which is the integrator's natural role.
Capabilities are shared confidentially, with authorised organisations only.