Detection and impact of cyber attacks in a critical infrastructures scenario: the CockpitCI approach

"The critical infrastructure protection is a key point from a social and economic point of view. The FP7 MICIE project has achieved promising results in evaluating impact of failures and faults in interdependent physical systems, as critical infrastructures. In order to achieve this goal, the consortium developed an online risk prediction tool, able to acquire information by local physical systems through their control centres and obtain accurate and synchronised predictions using shared interdependency models. However, results of MICIE project are not enough in order to quickly and effectively react to all adverse events that may occur over the system of systems and, in particular, to face cyber threats and attacks. The EC FP7 CockpitCI project aims to improve resilience and dependability of CIs through the design and the implementation of an alerting system that provides to CI operators an efficient tool to support them in the prevention of cyber attacks impact on real systems and in the implementation of possible consequence containment strategies in case of attack.. Keywords: critical infrastructure protection; SCADA systems; cyber attacks; countermeasures; detection strategies; reaction strategies; critical infrastructures; online risk prediction; infrastructure resilience; infrastructure dependability; alerting systems; containmen