The convergence of operational technology (OT) and information technology (IT) has created new challenges for enterprise risk management. Organizations must now develop integrated risk assessment frameworks that address cyber and physical risks across their industrial control systems and enterprise networks. This integration is crucial for developing a comprehensive risk management strategy that protects critical infrastructure while enabling operational efficiency through risk mitigation strategies.
Gartner defines risk management as:
"Risk management (also known as operational risk management or integrated risk management) is the management of granular business risks between the security governance layer and the enterprise risk management layer. Risk managers… manage areas such as vendor risk management, audit management, corporate risk and compliance, legal matters that affect risk, and even business continuity risks. This is also the bridge where cyber risks are addressed, using information to and from the security management layer."
So, risk management, by definition, implies a forward-looking (proactive) approach to organizational management and comprises both strategic and tactical components. We propose, therefore, that, by definition, a proactive approach to security will be considered significantly in any organization’s risk management plan.
The OT Security Assessment Landscape
Operational technology environments present unique security challenges that differ significantly from traditional IT systems. These systems control physical processes in critical infrastructure sectors, where system availability and safety are paramount. Cybersecurity risk assessments in these environments must account for those operational requirements while identifying potential vulnerabilities.
Frenos has developed a Proactive Defense Framework for Critical Infrastructure; this framework presents a comprehensive approach to proactive defense, moving beyond traditional reactive security measures to implement an intelligence-driven security strategy that anticipates and prevents threats before they materialize, systematically reducing the attack surface of critical infrastructure systems through a multi-faceted approach that combines threat intelligence, simulation-based validation, and continuous improvement.
Not surprisingly, the success of implementing this framework is measured through quantifiable risk reduction metrics, allowing organizations to demonstrate concrete improvements in their security posture. These metrics may include reductions in vulnerable attack paths, improvements in detection rates, and decreased incident response times.
So, let’s look at those framework elements through the lens of Risk Management – to make integrating these functions a natural and logical result of cyber threat mitigation; not a corporate, enterprise-driven mandate from a siloed risk management function. Let’s look at it holistically.
Threat Intelligence
The foundation of an effective cyber security risk management strategy lies in the systematic collection, analysis, and operationalization of threat intelligence. Critical infrastructure organizations must develop robust intelligence-gathering capabilities that extend beyond traditional indicator sharing to encompass a comprehensive understanding of adversary tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs).
By analyzing high-risk attack vectors identified through threat intelligence, organizations can prioritize their defensive measures more effectively. This prioritization should consider both the likelihood of specific attack methodologies being employed and the potential impact of successful attacks on critical operations. The resulting defensive measures should be proactive rather than reactive, focusing on preventing attacks by addressing vulnerabilities and attack paths before they can be exploited.
To support effective decision-making, organizations should implement risk-scoring and prioritization frameworks that quantify the relative importance of different threats. These frameworks should consider factors such as:
- The criticality of potentially affected assets
- The sophistication of threat actors
- The current state of defensive controls
- The potential consequence to operations
Regular reassessment of these risk scores ensures that defensive priorities remain aligned with the most pressing threats facing the organization.
This continuous assessment process should feed directly into the organization's broader risk management program, driving updates to defensive controls and security policies as needed.
Simulation Based Validation
The effectiveness of any proactive defense strategy ultimately depends on its ability to withstand real-world attacks. Attack path validation through simulation provides organizations with a structured methodology to identify and remediate potential vulnerabilities before they can be exploited by adversaries. This approach combines rigorous analysis with practical testing to ensure that defensive measures are both comprehensive and effective.
How is this used in conjunction with our holistic risk management approach?
Common and custom attack chains should be developed to test specific concerns or vulnerabilities identified through risk assessment processes.
Attack chains with identified risks should combine multiple techniques and approaches to simulate sophisticated, multi-stage attacks that better reflect real-world threats. The complexity and sophistication of these scenarios should increase over time as basic security controls are validated, improved and fed back into the overall risk assessment and management process.
Continuous Improvement
While traditional penetration testing provides valuable insights into security posture, the dynamic nature of modern threats demands a more continuous and automated approach to security validation. For example, Frenos uses Breach and Attack Simulation (BAS) to address this need by providing organizations with automated, consistent, and repeatable testing capabilities that can be executed.
The true value of a technology like BAS as a risk assessment tool lies not in the testing itself but in the systematic analysis of results.
Success and failure metrics should be tracked over time to identify trends and patterns in security control effectiveness. These metrics should be granular enough to identify specific control failures while also providing high-level views of overall security posture improvement. Gap identification through BAS should feed directly into the organization's risk management plan as a security improvement lifecycle. This is where the Risk Management folks get interested; using data collected over time to evaluate and prioritize the execution of ongoing and future vulnerability management.
Organizations should establish clear thresholds for acceptable risk and required remediation timeframes. High-risk findings that could directly impact critical infrastructure operations should trigger an immediate response, while lower-risk issues might be addressed through planned improvement cycles.
This is where an enterprise’s risk management plan integrates with its OT Security strategy.
Building a Sustainable Program
A holistic approach to OT security assessment offers improved risk visibility across the enterprise. Risk managers will have access to enhanced decision-making capabilities, allowing for more efficient resource allocation. The OT/IT teams will benefit from the availability of specific metrics that will support the alignment between security investments and business objectives. That makes this integrated scenario “sustainable” as the process renews itself over time in a continuous improvement model.
At Frenos, we are betting that the future of OT security assessment will involve enhanced integration with enterprise risk management systems. Organizations can better protect their critical infrastructure while maintaining operational efficiency by taking a holistic approach to OT security assessment that draws from, and feeds into, an enterprise risk management strategy.
Integrating OT Security Assessments into Enterprise Risk Management ensures that security measures align with business objectives while addressing the unique challenges of industrial control systems.
The success of this integration depends on strong collaboration between risk management,IT and OT teams, clear governance structures, and ongoing commitment by the entire organization to security improvement. More specifically, it will involve greater automation of assessment processes, improved threat intelligence capabilities, and advanced analytics for risk prediction. As threats continue to evolve, organizations must maintain flexible and adaptive assessment frameworks that can respond to changing risk landscapes while supporting operational requirements. Our platform is architected based on these tenets.
How does your organization rate regarding this kind of cross-functional, risk-driven OT security defense? Could you benefit from implementing the proactive defense framework we looked at earlier? We invite you to find out more about the Frenos Solution.
