Cyber risk has become a persistent challenge for water utilities, underscoring the need to protect critical operations, maintain service continuity and strengthen overall resilience.
Effective protection spans the entire cybersecurity lifecycle including:
- Identifying and prioritizing vulnerabilities for a cohesive view and action plan
- Detecting incidents as soon as they occur to limit exposure
- Accelerating response efforts for quicker security activation
- Remediating risks before they impact operations and costs
This continuous approach helps utilities build long-term resilience in an increasingly connected environment.
Start with a plan
Cybersecurity is not a one-time project but an ongoing journey. And no two water utilities are the same. Each one needs a strategy tailored specifically to their holistic organizational ecosystem.
Turning strategy into action requires a clear understanding of where you are today and where improvements are needed most. By establishing a roadmap based on operational priorities, existing security gaps and business objectives, water utilities can take a more deliberate and effective approach to building a resilience plan for today and over time.
Know your assets, know your risks
You can’t assess the risks in your operations until you assess the assets in them. That’s because you can only secure what you know exists. And unfortunately, many utilities today do not have a complete picture of all the devices that have been placed on their network over the years.
Asset Inventory & Lifecycle Management through SecureOT™ Platform provides OT organizations essential visibility and context across all assets including readily identifiable assets as well as hidden and embedded components, legacy infrastructure and serially joined equipment.
Gain a clear view of your entire environment from one single, vendor-neutral dashboard:
- The equipment that keeps operations running
- The software and systems in use
- How assets are connected across the network
- Areas that may need security updates or attention
- Who has access and what permissions they have
- Readiness for audits, regulations and industry standards
Along with having a platform in place to provide asset inventory and lifecycle management, you need a program that is tailored to complex OT operations and a dedicated team with both cybersecurity experience and OT-first expertise. SecureOT™ solution suite combines professional and managed security services with an OT-designed platform for comprehensive, end-to-end security protection.
Understand compliance and regulations
Having a cohesive cybersecurity action plan involves aligning with multiple security standards and regulations for a scalable, secure and future-ready industrial network architecture.
Adhere to recognized public health, environmental and cybersecurity frameworks to meet evolving compliance requirements while maintaining operational continuity:
American Water Infrastructure Act (AWIA):
AWIA advances the security, resilience and reliability of water systems through improved risk management, stronger operational oversight, community support and enhanced compliance measures, helping utilities protect critical services and public health.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA):
The EPA provides resources that help water and wastewater utilities improve cyber resilience and comply with growing cybersecurity expectations, including risk assessments, training and awareness and incidence response.
NIST CSF & NIS2:
NIST CSF is a risk-based framework developed to help organizations build, manage, and continuously improve their cybersecurity programs. It provides a structured approach to protecting critical infrastructure and operational technology (OT) environments.
NIS2 is Europe’s cybersecurity regulation designed to strengthen cyber resilience across critical industries and essential services and introduces broader coverage, stricter cybersecurity requirements and significantly higher penalties for non-compliance over NIS1.
IEC 62443
IEC 62443 is a globally recognized OT cybersecurity standard that helps industrial organizations and water utilities secure control systems, manage cyber risk and strengthen operational resilience.
Understanding all the regulations is complex. Our team of water and wastewater specialists and cybersecurity experts are here to break it all down for you. Plus, SecureOT helps utilities proactively address compliance requirements through a structured cybersecurity approach that supports audit readiness, reporting and regulatory alignment.