Feb 1st – Beyond Locked Doors: Digital Defenses for Water Treatment Plants

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Do you remember hearing about the Oldsmar, Florida water treatment facility back in February 2021? That event caught the nation’s attention and made everyone realize just how important cybersecurity is for water treatment facilities. Nowadays, when discussing security at water treatment plants, it’s not just about locking doors; we must also secure our digital systems.
Since 2018 there has been a law called America’s Water Infrastructure Act (AWIA). If you’re working with a water system serving more than 3300 people, this law asks you to make sure you’re prepared for cybersecurity risks. If you want a deeper dive, join us and we will cover current recommendations from the EPA website and this law.


In addition to the EPA recommendations, we will explore the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Cybersecurity Framework in greater depth. NIST’s Cybersecurity Framework is a comprehensive and widely recognized resource that serves as a roadmap for organizations seeking to enhance their cybersecurity posture. It offers a structured approach to identifying, protecting, detecting, responding to, and recovering from cybersecurity threats and incidents.
Lastly, if you’re looking for a tool to help secure your water facility, the AWWA has your back. They’ve developed a tool, the AWWA Cybersecurity Guidance and Assessment Tool, which aligns with the guidelines from NIST and AWIA 2018. We will briefly go over this tool and show how to use it.
So, while the world of water treatment is evolving, with the right tools and knowledge, we can ensure our water is clean and our facilities are safe.

Topics discussed:
• Key components of AWIA 2018.
• Key Components of NIST Cybersecurity Framework
• Brief overview of EPA rule directing state officials to assess cyber security resilience.
• Using the AWWA assessment tool.
• Recommendations to improve the cybersecurity of water treatment facilities.

Speaker Bio

Joel has almost ten years of total experience in Controls Systems in the Water/Wastewater industry.

Location

In-person at the Hughes Main Library and online at our Discord server.