ABS Cyber Security Advisor Delivers Keynote at ONS 2018

ABS joins former U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security to address cyber risk and critical infrastructure.

(Stavanger) ABS Cyber Security Senior Advisor Cris DeWitt delivered a keynote address alongside Former U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff at the Critical Infrastructure and Cyber event at Offshore North Sea (ONS) 2018. 

Hosted by The Ambassador of the United States of America to Norway, RADM Kenneth J. Braithwaite, USN (ret), the U.S. Embassy's Sections for Public Affairs, Political & Economic Affairs, the U.S. Commercial Service and ABS, the high-profile discussion examined critical infrastructure and cyber risk in offshore energy environments.

Chertoff, who headed the US Department of Homeland Security between 2005 and 2009, gave a keynote address focusing on cybersecurity policy as well as cyber issues related to the Internet of Things (IoT). DeWitt articulated strategies to reduce cyber risk on maritime assets, specifically for operational technology (OT) systems which control core functions on offshore platforms related to drilling and production operations.

The ABS groundbreaking methodology to measure cyber security risk associated with OT is known as the FCI Cyber Risk™ Model. The proprietary model provides offshore and marine clients a calculated risk index for offshore units and marine vessels across an organization. The index quantifies cyber security risk and provides owners and operators an actionable strategy to reduce cyber risk, allowing operators to target cyber security investments across their assets.

"The unique ABS model simplifies and demystifies OT cyber security giving operators a situational awareness of cyber risk," says DeWitt. "The offshore oil and gas industry is extremely complex, and there is no need to create further complexity. Our approach to offshore cyber security and the broader safety component is that it should be straightforward to implement, understand and maintain." 

Source: American Bureau of Shipping

About ABS Group

ABS Group of Companies, Inc. (ABS Group) and its operating subsidiaries provide risk management solutions and certification services worldwide that help clients address the safety, integrity, quality and environmental efficiency of critical assets and operations. Headquartered in Spring, Texas, ABS Group operates with more than 1200 professionals across the globe, serving the marine and offshore, oil, gas and chemical, government, power and energy and industrial sectors. ABS Group is a subsidiary of ABS (www.eagle.org), a leading marine and offshore classification society.