Utilities and Energy Companies Could Do More to Protect Infrastructure [#Infographic]

When it comes to guarding energy-sector infrastructure, IT professionals have their work cut out for them.

According to a Tripwire statistic featured in a recent CDW infographic, 82 percent of survey respondents in the oil and gas industry said they saw a jump in successful cyberattacks over the last year.

“It’s tempting to believe that this increase in attacks is horizontal across industries, but the data shows that energy organizations are experiencing a disproportionately large increase when compared to other industries,” Tim Erlin, the director of IT security and risk strategy for Tripwire, said in a statement.

Despite increasing risks, data from the CDW infographic indicates that only 55 percent of power and utilities companies perform threat assessments, and just 51 percent actively monitor and analyze security intelligence.

Energy companies instead focus their efforts on other areas: The infographic shows that these organizations most commonly implement information security strategies, secure access control measures and patch management tools.

Still, 69 percent of oil and gas industry respondents believe they’re able to detect all cyberattacks; and because detection is the first line of defense against breaches, it’s clear cybersecurity strategies need to improve.

Check out the CDW infographic below to learn about additional cybersecurity gaps in the energy and utilities sector.