Protecting Industrial Control Systems – Key Components of Our Nation’s Critical Infrastructure
Industrial control systems (ICS) are information systems that control industrial processes, such as manufacturing, product production, handling, and distribution. ICS are used in many industries: electric, water, oil and gas, chemical, pharmaceutical, pulp and paper, food and beverage industries; manufacture of automobiles, aerospace equipment, and other durable goods; and air and rail transportation.
These control systems are vitally important to the smooth operation of the nation’s critical infrastructures, which are essential to the government and economy of the United States.
Since critical infrastructures are often highly interconnected and mutually dependent systems, an incident in one infrastructure can affect other infrastructures, and cause operational failures. Approximately 90 percent of the nation’s critical infrastructures are privately owned and operated, including the telecommunications, energy, financial services, manufacturing, water, transportation, healthcare, and emergency services sectors. Federal agencies also operate critical infrastructures including industrial processes, air traffic control, and mail handling.
See Protecting Industrial Control Systems – Key Components of Our Nation’s Critical Infrastructure.
Tags: critical infrastructure, Guide to Industrial Control System (ICS) Security, ICS, Industrial control systems, NIST SP 800-82, NIST Special Publication (SP) 800-82
