It is imperative that technology deployed in the infrastructure today can be upgraded and made to be integrated with the next generation of evolving systems. Some companies build the most impressive products, but they are not compatible with anything else. As a parallel, consider iPhones. How many iPhones have there been and how many chargers? It’s a similar situation with cybersecurity. Billions of dollars are spent to secure the latest products, but often things have to be reconfigured because products are not compatible. Meanwhile, cyber-attackers are adept at remaining one step ahead of the game, so security teams must do their best to stay on top of the technological race in cybersecurity. It’s no small undertaking. A large majority of the utilities are prioritizing investment to upgrade adequately. Unfortunately, the smaller co-ops often don’t have the financial capital to do the same.
In terms of deploying manpower for the electric companies and their internal floor charts for operation security, there is typically a Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) and a Chief russia phone numbers Information Officer (CIO). “CIOs are becoming increasingly important in calculating how to increase profits via the use of ICT frameworks, as well as the vital role of reducing expenditure and limiting damage by setting up controls and planning for possible disasters.”26
Large investment utilities in the energy sector have a CIO with several steps of separation to the Senior Director level of IT. Smaller companies tend to have a one-size-fits-all situation; a person or a small group of people at the head of the table who have a multi-faceted skill set in the cybersecurity area. Sometimes it is an Electrical Engineer or a specialized maintenance team. Some organizations hire or develop an Industrial IT or Operational OT tech group in which a multi-member team is assembled to tackle problems.