Following recent reports that UK energy infrastructure is 'at risk of shut down from cyber attacks', Lila Kee, chief product officer, GlobalSign, and NAESB Wholesale Electric Quadrant Board Member, says:

"As the U.S. wholesale energy sector wrestles with similar concerns around how to protect its infrastructure from cyber vulnerabilities stemming from foreign influence and control, it’s clear a strong government-industry partnership is vital in addressing the very real threat foreign-based attacks could have on our nations’ economy and livelihood.

UK energy infrastructure owners and regulators should strongly consider making similar investments in industry-government driven security standards and initiatives, as demonstrated by the North American Standard’s Energy Boards (NAESB) Cyber security standards committee.

NAESB’s security standards development around PKI presents an excellent model for UK energy owners and regulators to follow, as security, operational, cost and privacy factors are taken into consideration through a risk-based and fluid security frame-work."