HACKERS TARGET OIL & GAS INDUSTRY

Findings from a recent study by cybersecurity company Tripwire has revealed that 82% of oil & gas industry respondents have seen an increase in cyberattacks over the past 12 months.

Slightly more than half of the respondents said the rate of cyberattacks has increased between 50% and 100% over the past month, and that 69% were not confident their organizations were able to detect them all.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said the energy sector faces more cyberattacks than any other industry. It has been impacted by robust state-sponsored, cyber-espionage campaigns, such as the Laziok and Energetic Bear Trojan attacks.

These assaults could potentially damage physical infrastructure. While attention has been given to threats impacting the grid, the oil & gas industry has not received the same level of scrutiny.

“Successful attacks could mean that attackers are able to breach a specific security control or can get closer to sensitive data using malware scams that have been detected,” said Tim Erlin, director of IT security and risk strategy for Tripwire. “It could also mean that attackers are launching more persistent, targeted attacks.”