Reacted before it became an incident - security system averted OT anomaly in technical building

Due to the sensitivity surrounding the architecture and risk profile of the facility, we are not disclosing the name of the building or the actors involved.

Incident avoided by a margin

In connection with work on infrastructure and configuration in a technical environment, an unforeseen situation arose that could have posed a risk of operational disruptions or unintended communication across networks. Thanks to the facility being under active monitoring by Guard Automation, the anomaly was detected and handled immediately, before it had any real impact.

This is an example of how quickly things can arise, and how important proactive measures, technical insight and access to people who understand both the system and the process are.

The response from the customer after the incident was clear: ”Cheers for Guard Automation,” it was said. Not because something happened, but because nothing happened.

Why OT security requires OT expertise

It can be tempting to use the same tools and mindsets in both IT and OT. But the reality is that the threat landscape, and the consequences, are fundamentally different.

Cyber security in both IT and OT is about confidentiality, integrity and availability. The difference lies in the order of priorities.

IT: C → I → A
Confidentiality and integrity are often prioritised first, while availability may temporarily be sacrificed, for example during updates or patching, to protect data.

OT: A → I → C
In operational environments, availability comes first to ensure continuous operation and physical control. The integrity of control logic and signals is critical for safe and correct function. Confidentiality is still important, but rarely the highest priority.

Where IT attacks can compromise information, OT incidents can halt operations, damage infrastructure and put people and the environment at risk.

Therefore, OT security requires domain expertise:

• An understanding of how control systems actually function
• Knowledge of real-time protocols and deterministic logic
• Awareness of how small changes can have system-wide consequences

This competence cannot be built through IT training alone. It comes from many years of experience in automation, operations and the process industry.

Guard Automation - present in practice

Guard Automation is not a developer of security tools. We build value through:

• Specialised OT expertise and multidisciplinary advisory services
• Continuous monitoring and incident response from our SOC
• Maintenance and follow-up of OT infrastructure over time
• Advisory services in segmentation, access control and vulnerability assessment

We know the processes, technologies and everyday reality of technical facilities. When something happens, we are operational, and we know what to look for.

The threat landscape is in motion

More and more technical facilities are being connected to the cloud, remote control, third-party integrations and new services. This creates value, but it also opens up new attack surfaces.

”Many undesired incidents are not necessarily caused by malicious actors, but rather complexity and lack of clarity in responsibilities. When multiple environments are connected without a holistic understanding of how IT and OT affect each other, minor changes can lead to major consequences. That is why monitoring and operational insight are absolutely crucial,” says Jan-Terje Sørlie, Chief Technology Officer at Guard Automation.