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The equipment utilized at the utilities is rather specialized and not sold at the local hardware
store.

Certain pieces of equipment may take weeks or longer to manufacture and ship to a facility.

From the energy recipients view, this issue highlights the need for disaster recovery plans
(DRP) and back-up plans.

These both need to be in place, tested, and updated as needed per the environment and as
results of the tests. If the business model needs change, these plans likewise need to be
updated so that these match the business needs.

These tests may plan for the worst case scenario, however not every aspect would be covered
with these table top exercises talking through potential issues. There are always areas that are
not fully thought through.

To best test these, the actual issue should be physically introduced. This would work to bring
out the other issues not thought through.

The widespread effects of the storm provide an opportunity to think through what may happen to
the localized commercial and consumer’s utility customers when there is an issue.

Planning with a DR plan and BIA is pertinent and relevant to mitigate the potential effects from
attacks or malware. A low level of effect for the utility from the mitigants being applied is
important to the clientele and utility.

About The Author

Charles Parker, II began coding in the 1980’s. Presently CP is an Information Security Architect
at a Tier One supplier to the automobile industry. CP is presently completing the PhD
(Information Assurance and Security) in the dissertation stage at Capella University. CP also is
an adjunct faculty at Thomas Edison State University. CP’s interests include cryptography,
SCADA, and NFC. He has presented at regional InfoSec conferences.

Charles Parker, II may be reached at [email protected] and InfoSecPirate
(Twitter).

106 Cyber Warnings E-Magazine – April 2017 Edition
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