ORLANDO – Famed broadcast journalist Ted Koppel spoke to the security professionals at ASIS 2016 at Tuesday’s keynote address, focused on cybersecurity for the national power grid. He was promoting his book on the subject, Lights Out, which he also signed copies of in the ASIS bookstore.
While Koppel conceded he was probably preaching to the proverbial choir, attendees learned about his research into the vulnerabilities of SCADA systems and their control of the three major power grids in the United States.
“Walls on our southern border will not protect us against a cyber attack,” Koppel said.
Twice in the past two years, Koppel pointed out, President Obama mentioned the threat of a cyber attack on our power grids in his State of the Union. “We are in a situation where the danger of an attack on the power grid – which would have enormous consequences – is certainly within the capabilities of several nations.”
Most alarming, Koppel’s research and interviews with officials at government agencies including DHS, FEMA and emergency response organizations such as the Red Cross revealed that there are sparse, if any, response plans in place in the event of an attack. See the accompanying exclusive video where Koppel talks about his conversation with Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson about America’s preparedness against this type of attack on the power grid.
Many of the details are available in the New York Times bestselling investigative book, where he outlines not only the extreme likelihood of an eventual cyber attack on the power grid, but also the shocking lack of readiness in our country.
Whether they are security integrators or practitioners, of course, security professionals in just about any field have first-hand experience and knowledge in cybersecurity. “Sony had 14 separate firewalls in place…13 of them worked,” Koppel said.
One of the main issues beyond preparedness, according to Koppel, is tracking down the culprits of these attacks. “Even though it was fairly obvious that the (Sony attack) came from North Korea, it still took the FBI a couple of months to say with absolute certainty that it was North Korea. How does the President respond when it takes weeks or months to figure out who actually did it?”
“There are already hundreds of cyber warriors – hackers- who have been deployed all over the world, and it isn’t going to be a wall that protects us,” Koppel concluded.
In addition to being available in the ASIS bookstore here at the show, learn more about Lights Out at the book’s official website, www.tedkoppellightsout.com.
Paul Rothman is Editor in Chief of Security Dealer & Integrator (SD&I) magazine. Access the current issue along with digital archives at www.secdealer.com. Pick up a free copy of SD&I at ASIS booth #1253.
