Smart Buildings and Cyber Attacks. The evolution of smart buildings has been on the increase in recent time and this is happening on a global scale. Smart buildings are very significant to smart cities, but the challenge is as the number of these buildings increase, the security risk associated with them also increases. This growth is fundamentally due to the fact we live in a world gradually permeated by technology, in which process automation and the search for energy proficiency contribute not only to sustainability but also to cost reduction.
Today, smart devices control building management activities for instance access, temperature control, lighting control, communication, and safety systems in numerous enterprises. Such congregated information environment and operational technology (IT/OT) has to a large extent made these enterprises more vulnerable to recurrent cyber-attacks. These attacks tend to occur in a number of ways for instance; phishing emails to an advanced persistent threat (APT). Furthermore, coupled with information technology devices and other common network connection, the attack has been further deepened, which in turn has presented a thriving ground for cyber adversaries to play on.
Steps on how to stay protected from this attack
To mitigate these attacks and achieve the full potential of smart buildings, operators need to modify how smart building control systems are architected and handled from a cyber-security point of view. The knowledge of this will further inspire them to set aside administrative barriers which are an important approach towards executing and operating cyber-secure smart building control systems.
Secondly, businesses can begin by incorporating machine learning algorithms to monitor threat prevention. This can be achieved by integrating partnership-based strategies are well as offering vertical-specific solutions.
Finally, organizations must prioritize threat-handling and endpoint visibility to stay protected. The smarter your building gets and the less these two groups work with each other, the more vulnerable technology will become resulting in the increase of external cyber-attacks. Teams need to work together to create a more secure system and in turn, organizations must adhere to specific practices to keep their building and business as secure as possible.