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Indian pharmaceutical organizations can strengthen its security and make it more challenging for adversaries to carry out attacks. As the pharmaceutical sector adopts digital transformation with a focus on smart manufacturing, digital supply chains, phase IV trials, and customer value, cybersecurity and Operational Technology security take center stage, said Pritam Shah, global practice head – OT Security, Inspira Enterprise, a global cybersecurity risk management & digital transformation service provider.
Pharma organizations, housing sensitive patient data, clinical trials, patented drugs, and technological advancements are enticing targets for cybercriminals, as seen in recent attacks on Sun Pharma and Granules India. Such incidents globally impact public health and national security, he noted.
Operational Technology devices in pharma, like in other sectors, initially were not built with security in mind and relied on air gaps for separation. Today’s technological advancements blur the line between Operational Technology and IT, offering productivity, efficiency, and faster time to market, but unfortunately introducing high-security risks. Among the many challenges faced by pharma organizations, IT/Operational Technology convergence and legacy OT systems are significant concerns, Shah told Pharmabiz.
Threat actors are increasingly targeting the convergence point of IT and Operational Technology driving the need for a unified defense strategy to bridge the gap between IT and OT security, he noted.
IT Security teams typically lack access to OT assets due to physical or logical isolation. It is, therefore, crucial to appoint, dedicated OT/IoT security managers for each plant. Outlining the duties and responsibilities of both IT and OT teams while cultivating collaboration is key.
There is an imminent need to train all team members with Operational Technology/IoT access on cybersecurity practices, risk recognition, and other dos and don’ts. Security awareness and cross-training are essential for IT and Operational Technology personnel at all levels to ensure a comprehensive understanding of IT/OT convergence risks.
New technologies and innovation bring new challenges and risks that IoT/OT security teams must be made aware of. They should understand the benefits and risks, employ security measures and meet compliance requirements. Teams should stay informed and establish compliance reporting with new regulations getting introduced.
IT solutions are unable to detect IoT devices due to their limited understanding of Operational Technology protocols. OT solutions employ 100s of protocols that are not familiar with standard IT security controls. Both security teams must identify, classify and inventory all network assets. A centralized dashboard should be used, as it enhances visibility and enables continuous monitoring of multiple systems.
Once visibility is established, mapping all IT-Operational Technology communications is critical to protect the environment from disruptions. Understanding network behavior is key and unified dashboards can aid in this process. It is key to monitor network variables, protocols, access ports, and links for detecting unusual activity and anomalous behavior.
Once Operational Technology Asset visibility and IDS solution are deployed, it is imperative to monitor alerts that may get generated for expedited remediation, operating round the clock. Managed Services monitoring and remediation, incident response and vulnerability management, digital forensics, threat intelligence advisory, etc., play a very crucial role in making your OT systems Cyber-ready, said Shah.
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