Protecting operational technology and edge devices

This alert is relevant to Australian businesses and organisations that operate operational technology including refrigeration and cooling technology. The alert is intended for technical audiences and those responsible for operational technology in their organisation.

Background

The Australian Signals Directorate's Australian Cyber Security Centre (ASD's ACSC) is aware of cyber security incidents affecting commercial refrigeration systems overseas.

While ASD's ACSC has not seen active targeting in Australia, businesses and organisations should remain vigilant. ASD's ACSC strongly recommends that any Australian organisations and businesses that operate internet-connected operational technology (OT), including commercial refrigeration systems, assess their exposure to cyber security risks and follow ASD’s ACSC existing guidance on operational technology environments and securing edge devices.

Insecure connectivity in OT and edge devices is known to be targeted by malicious actors to cause disruption and harm to critical services. ASD’s ACSC guidance helps businesses to make decisions when designing, putting in place, and managing secure OT environments and edge devices.

Mitigation advice

ASD’s ACSC advises Australian organisations to take the following steps:

• Ensure that OT environments and interfaces, and edge devices, are not directly exposed to the internet (particularly for older devices and systems, and those with remote access).
• Identify and patch any vulnerabilities promptly.
• Apply strong authentication, access controls, and network segmentation.
• Monitor systems for unusual automated activity and review security logs regularly.

Businesses should review and act on ASD’s ACSC existing guidance on operational technology environments, including guidance on securing edge devices and secure connectivity principles for operational technology.

Where to get help

Organisations that identify suspicious activity, attempted exploitation, or vulnerabilities affecting their systems, can contact ASD via 1300 CYBER1 (1300 292 371), or at www.cyber.gov.au/submit-a-report