New US-Israel consortium to protect critical infrastructure launched at Cyebrtech Global TLV
Consortium to be led by Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel along with Arizona State University
BGN Technologies, the technology transfer company of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU), announced the launch of the joint Israel-US consortium, ICRDE, in the field of cyber protection of energy facilities, for the purpose of promoting an R&D collaboration that will address cyberthreats on energy sources and facilities.
The announcement was made today (Wednesday) during the Cyebrtech Global TLV conference. Total investment is estimated to reach $12 million, including funds from the participating institutions.
As the frequency and scale of cyberattacks on energy facilities is rising, many countries are seeking new and efficient methods to protect critical resources such as water, electricity and gas, as well as the facilities that produce, dispense and store energy.
In order to protect energy facilities, the consortium will promote projects focusing on all manufacturing stages, as well as storage and energy distribution. The consortium provided a detailed work plan, based on comprehensive research by experts from both countries.
"ICRDE aims to promote joint R&D for protection from energy-related cyberthreats and will encompass the following categories,” said Dr. Rami Puzis, Department of Software and Information Systems Engineering, BGU.
“Establishing a database of cyber-physical system attacks on energy facilities and simulation of these attacks in a controlled research environment; development of technology and advanced tools for monitoring and correlating the information technology (IT) and the operational technology (OT) layers of Industrial Control Systems (ICS) to protect energy infrastructures from attacks.
Members in the consortium include Israeli and American companies as well as government and research institutions. Activities will be led by BGU alongside Arizona State University. Among the US partners: Georgia Institute of Technology, Nexant, Delek US, Duquesne Light Company, Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories and the MITRE corporation. The Israeli partners include the following companies: Otorio, RAD, SIGA OT Solutions, Arava Power, DK Innovation and Meptagon.