Why would someone do an OT & ICS risk assessment?

Many organizations conduct OT & ICS risk assessments to proactively manage cyber threats in operational environments. It’s a great way to identify vulnerabilities you didn’t know existed, and ensure your organization meets compliance requirements.

What deliverables should I expect after the assessment?

You will receive a detailed risk report, prioritized recommendations, compliance guidelines, and a tailored roadmap for remediation and cybersecurity program improvement. In other words, you get everything you need to ensure security moving forward.

Why is an OT-tailored risk assessment necessary?

Since OT environments have such unique constraints, they require specialized methods not covered by traditional IT assessments.

What does a cybersecurity assessment for OT involve?

An OT & ICS risk assessment from LeveL5Cyber includes asset identification, threat modeling, risk evaluation, gap analysis, and strategic recommendations aligned with OT-specific standards.

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OT & ICS Risk Assessment Services

Right-sized Solutions to fit all OT environments

At LeveL5Cyber, we offer cybersecurity assessments for a wide range of OT industries. Cybersecurity risk assessments specific to OT systems identify and evaluate potential risks that could impact Health and Human Safety, Availability, and overall Reliability. Along with the people and process portion of OT and ICS Risk Assessments, LeveL5Cyber leverages AI tooling that demonstrates possible attack scenarios and the steps taken on a digital twin of an environment in order to identify the threat and risk to key networks.

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Why Perform a Cybersecurity Assessment for OT?

Performing a cybersecurity assessment for OT is a critical step toward crafting a secure infrastructure for your systems and organizations. OT systems operate with different priorities than IT, so understanding risks in this context requires a specialized understanding that our experts are proud to help with.

Specifically, organizations turn to OT & ICS risk assessment services for a variety of reasons. While some are driven by regulatory requirements like NIST CSF alignment or IEC compliance, others’ goals are to identify vulnerabilities before they begin to cause problems. Regardless, doing this helps gain better visibility into your organization’s asset inventory.

Risk assessment services also help support larger efforts, such as building cybersecurity roadmaps or preparing for important mergers or acquisitions.

Why Does a Business Need Cybersecurity Assessments for OT?

OT environments pose different risks to a business than IT. As with IT systems, they play a role in the integrity and confidentiality of data, but unique to OT systems, they also impact a business’s ability to offer safe, reliable performance.

Prioritizing your cybersecurity efforts in OT is more efficient when risks and potential threats have been clearly identified.

OT-focused risk assessments include:

Which Industries Require OT/ICS Risk Assessment Services?

Many industry professionals understand the benefits of a total risk assessment but Many professionals understand the value of comprehensive risk assessments; however, few realize just how essential OT-specific evaluations are for safeguarding infrastructure. Unlike general IT assessments, OT & ICS risk assessments are purposefully designed for operational environments where uptime and safety are critical.

Here are some of the industries we specialize in:

An OT & ICS Risk Assessment can also be tailored to Agriculture, Critical Manufacturing, Pharmaceutical, Food & Beverage, and Defense Industrial Base businesses. Taking a proactive approach to protecting your network infrastructure can minimize the risk of a malicious cyberattack, as well as reduce the potential for downtime and loss of critical data.

Challenges in OT & ICS Cybersecurity

The cybersecurity landscape is subject to unique challenges because of its complex environment. Many control systems run on outdated operating systems with limited patching options, making them more vulnerable to security threats than more updated systems.

Visibility is also a major issue: organizations don’t often have a complete inventory of devices or a full understanding of how data flows across their network. These gaps in knowledge create opportunities for threats to exploit these weak points and create serious complications.

What’s Included in Our OT & ICS Risk Assessment Process

At LeveL5Cyber, we’re passionate about giving you the peace of mind you need when it comes to your organization’s level of cybersecurity. That’s why we take a methodical, field-driven approach that minimizes disruption while uncovering any critical exposures that may have been missed.

Our team provides hands-on evaluations and domain-specific insight to produce a clear picture of your cybersecurity position. Here’s a bit more of what’s included in our comprehensive OT & ICS risk assessment process.

1. Asset Identification and Threat Monitoring

Our cybersecurity assessment for OT begins by mapping your OT environment. This includes cataloging control systems, field devices, engineering workstations, HMIs, and supporting infrastructure. As was mentioned, many organizations don’t have a complete inventory, which makes it difficult to understand the full risk of exposure. That’s why we’re here.

Once we’ve identified the organization’s assets, we analyze how they might communicate, where any vulnerabilities may lie, and how external (or internal) threats might exploit them. During this step, our team offers passive monitoring techniques to avoid impacting any live operations.

2. Risk Evaluation and Gap Analysis

After the team has identified assets as well as potential threats, we evaluate risks in terms of impact, likelihood, and exploitability. LeveL5Cyber uses established frameworks such as NIST CSF, NIST 800-82, and IEC 62443 to benchmark your current security posture. We’ll also note any gaps in existing controls and assess areas of non-compliance.

It’s during this stage that we translate these abstract threats into more practical insights: what they are, what needs fixing, how urgent, and what the potential consequences are. By the end of this step, your team will have a clear, actionable understanding of your OT risk levels.

How LeveL5Cyber Can Support You and Your Team

An effective OT & ICS risk assessment is only as valuable as what you do with the results. And, at LeveL5Cyber, we don’t just give you a report: we help your team translate our findings into practical next steps. No matter what the results are, our experts stay engaged where it counts.

When you’re ready to take the next step toward securing your OT environment, contact us to schedule a consultation. Soon, you’ll have added peace of mind knowing your organization’s OT environment is as secure as ever

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FaQ for Cybersecurity Assessments for OT

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Why risk assessments?

LeveL5Cyber’s Risk Assessments enable organizations to inform and prioritize decisions regarding cybersecurity. The services take into consideration today’s evolving threat landscape to drive cybersecurity priorities with an outcome-driven approach using industry standard processes.

How long do risk assessments take to complete?

While timing can vary, most Assessments will take approximately five to six weeks to complete. Program Development services may take longer based on the scope.

What is IEC62443?

The ISA/IEC 62443 series of standards define requirements and processes for implementing and maintaining electronically secure industrial automation and control systems (IACS). These standards set best practices for security and provide a way to assess the level of security performance.

What is NIST SP 800-82?

A NIST Special Publication provides guidance on how to secure operational technology (OT) while addressing their unique performance, reliability, and safety requirements. OT encompasses a broad range of programmable systems and devices that interact with the physical environment (or manage devices that interact with the physical environment). These systems and devices detect or cause a direct change through the monitoring and/or control of devices, processes, and events. Examples include industrial control systems, building automation systems, transportation systems, physical access control systems, physical environment monitoring systems, and physical environment measurement systems.