ABS, NAES Corporation Partner to Strengthen Industrial Cybersecurity in Power & Energy Sector

Collaboration will help NAES meet and exceed NERC CIP requirements and implement comprehensive cybersecurity programs for critical IT and OT environments.

ABSG Consulting Inc. ("ABS Consulting"), a leading global risk management company, and NAES Corporation, the energy industry’s largest independent provider of O&M services, have formed a partnership to provide industrial cybersecurity services for critical infrastructure in the power and energy sector. Through this collaboration, NAES will have enhanced access to the services, technology, and expertise to meet the North American Electric Reliability Corporation Critical Infrastructure Protection ("NERC CIP") requirements. NAES will also be able to go beyond compliance to implement industrial cybersecurity programs that protect its information technology ("IT") and operational technology ("OT"), increase the security of the IT and OT environments of its clients and better secure the U.S. power grid from cyber criminals.

In March 2021, the United States Government Accountability Office ("GAO") released a report that found the nation’s power grid and its distribution systems – which carry electricity from transmission systems to end users and are regulated primarily by states – are a growing target for cyberattacks.

"Threat actors have set their sights on our nation’s critical infrastructure, including our power and energy systems. Given the pivotal role these systems play in our everyday lives, in business, and the overall operation of our country, we must do more to enhance its safety, reliability and security," said Ian Bramson, global head of Industrial Cybersecurity at ABS Consulting. "Our partnership with NAES will enable power and energy companies across the U.S. to design and implement end-to-end industrial cybersecurity programs tailored to their exact security needs, while helping them meet and exceed the requirements of NERC CIP."

With access to ABS Consulting’s Cybersecurity Managed Services, NAES and its clients will now have access to a broad range of risk-based solutions on every stage of their cyber defense, converging IT and OT systems and leveraging specific domain expertise in the power and energy sector. This includes vulnerability assessments, threat monitoring and incident response services, which will automate existing manual procedures and offer additional insights into actual threats on critical power and energy OT networks and industrial control systems (ICS).

"We’ve seen just how important industrial cybersecurity is within the energy and power industry this past year with incidents like the Colonial Pipeline cyber attack," said Alan Bull, NAES Corporation vice president, Compliance and Fleet Services. "We are proud to partner with ABS Consulting to bring critical security protections to such a vital sector."