Bi-Weekly CyberSecurity Recap
Curated bi-weekly news summary for facility management professional, building owners and IT professionals who are interested in building security and Facility IT.
Collaborating Around Cybersecurity
Significant coverage of cybersecurity in BAS, a must-read for anyone involved with building systems. Includes security articles from our CEO James Lee and our CTO James Butler, Fred Gordy, Marc Petock, Kevin T. Smith, Therese Sullivan, Pook-Ping Yao, and Anto Budiardjo.
The Need for Holistic BAS Cybersecurity
In this article, Cimetrics CEO Jim Lee outlines our Secured by Cimetrics initiative to help the BAS industry gain a stronger cybersecurity posture.
Introduction to BACnet/SC - A Secure Alternative to BACnet/IP
Our CTO of Cimetrics Jim Butler gave an interview to Automated Building.com whose April theme is Holistic Cybersecurity. Cybersecurity solutions cannot be a self-serving or an isolated approach they need to be part of a Holistic solution. And one of the parts is BACnet Secure Connect (BACnet/SC) - a popular alternative to BACnet/IP in the future. Here he explains the basics of BACnet/SC. Also, you can learn more details on BACnet/SC in this video presentation link to which you can find in this article.
Our Collective Success "Cybersecurity"
Anto Budiardjo, the editor of New Deal Blog and Ken Sinclair, the editor of
AutomatedBuildings.com discuss the April Issue and the fact that "Our collective success is based on our weakest link. Our industry is inherently collaborative. We seldom work alone on a project, and partnering is our modus operandi."
Cybersecurity: The Gatekeeper to Value
The concept of Facility IT mandates that information flows securely and easily between all elements of BAS, FM and IT. The New Deal blog editor discusses that for the past three decades, the BAS industry has been steadily marching toward convergence with IT. One challenge many BAS companies have faced is how to maintain and grow their business in the midst of this process. Many, myself included, have opined that such convergence would lead to significant BAS advancements such as making buildings more efficient. Knowing BAS is a key component to improving occupant comfort, the inevitable convergence with IT is something building owners should see as a way to improve the performance and value of their core business.
6 Top Information Security Risks to Know in 2019
Every year the Information Security Forum (ISF) — a nonprofit organization dedicated to the research and analysis of security risks — releases a report called Threat Horizon that outlines the most pressing security threats. The 2019 report contains security risks that illustrate the importance, if not urgency, of updating cybersecurity measures fit for 4IR technologies.
3 security threats businesses need to prepare for by 2021
IoT and digital transformation efforts will leave more businesses vulnerable to cyberattack, according to Information Security Forum. The report highlights three top threat categories that businesses can expect to face in their day-to-day operations over the next two years, as a direct result of digital transformation efforts and technology developments.
Top 5 Cybersecurity Myth To Leave Behind In 2018
Cybersecurity is always a pressing issue for the companies. Today irrespective of the sector data is the life and blood of all the industries. A huge amount of data are being stored and their security is always a prime concern for the companies. This article outlines top 5 security myths that certainly needs to be left behind for the year 2018.
The Need for Holistic BAS Cybersecurity
Introduction to BACnet/SC - A Secure Alternative to BACnet/IP
Bi-Weekly CyberSecurity Recap
Bi-Weekly CyberSecurity Recap
Curated bi-weekly news summary for facility management professional, building owners and IT professionals who are interested in building security and Facility IT.
Triton is the world’s most murderous malware, and it’s spreading
The rogue code can disable safety systems designed to prevent catastrophic industrial accidents. It was discovered in the Middle East, but the hackers behind it are now targeting companies in North America and other parts of the world, too.The hackers had deployed malicious software, or malware, that let them take over the plant’s safety instrumented systems. These physical controllers and their associated software are the last line of defense against life-threatening disasters. They are supposed to kick in if they detect dangerous conditions, returning processes to safe levels or shutting them down altogether by triggering things like shutoff valves and pressure-release mechanisms.
The malware made it possible to take over these systems remotely.
7 Top Security Risks in 2019, According to Security Professionals
As with every year, 2019 brings with it myriad security risks and security professionals have a lot to say about what companies and individuals should do to prepare for and prevent these issues. This articles outlines what seven of the top security professionals believe are the biggest threats looming this year.
Threats and Risks to Complex IoT Environments
The internet-of-things (IoT) has made possible a new kind of space — complex IoT environments (CIE). The evolution of smart homes and smart buildings into complex IoT environments reflects the continuing developments in home and industrial automation. Security should not be left behind as increased complexity also means new threats and risks.
AT&T Launches New Cybersecurity Division, Joins Global Telco Security Alliance
AT&T announced a new standalone security division, AT&T Cybersecurity, at this week’s RSA Conference. It combines technology and threat intelligence from Alien Vault, which the operator acquired last year, and AT&T’s security consulting and managed services.
Also this week, AT&T became the first North American operator to join the Global Telco Security Alliance. The group, which was launched last year by Etisalat, Singtel, SoftBank, and Telefónica, shares threat intelligence and security best practices in an effort to help telcos protect their customers from cyberattacks. AT&T joined as a founding member.
Protect your Building Automation Systems
This article outlines the preventive measures that can be taken to secure systems and limit hacking opportunities.
How the IoT Cybersecurity Improvement Act Impacts You
As the world trends toward more internet-connected devices, security is playing catch-up. Standards need to exist or we’re all at risk. The IoT Cybersecurity Improvement Act may be a step in the right direction.
How to Think About Cybersecurity Differently
-If organizations want to get ahead of cybersecurity threats, or at least not fall too far behind malicious actors, they need to start thinking about IT security differently.
That was a key takeaway from two keynote speakers at the CDW Protect SummIT in Phoenix. Businesses large and small need to take a page from hackers and learn lessons from their behavior, and must also shift their focus from a perimeter-based defense to a data-centric one, they said.
Collecting data from pulse meters
February, 2019 Newsletter - Current Status of Cyber Security in the BAS Industry, Commissioning Project with Analytika, New BACnet Explorer and more…
Current Status of Cyber Security in the BAS Industry
Here are the Audio Stream and Slides from the second Free Webinar of the 2019 Smart Buildings Series. This webinar was on the State of BAS Cybersecurity with Cimetrics president Jim Lee.
Building analytics then and now
An interesting article from our analyst Julianne Rhoads about her experience with Continuous Commissioning in Peru when she was pursuing a master’s degree in solar energy engineering and what she is doing now.
Fault detection and root cause analysis of big data provide a strategic approach to energy savings at high-performance healthcare, pharmaceutical, and university laboratory buildings. Insidious HVAC faults are often superseded by reactive maintenance. By analyzing building data, large scale operational issues can be mitigated, and persistent alarms can be minimized. The economic impact associated with these issues can be used to quantify building performance improvement potential. Read more 
Commissioning Project with Cimetrics Analytika
The new issue of Currents – the energy conservation newsletter for Jefferson Health, outlines the Building Continuous Commissioning Project that began in 2013. Jefferson selected a team of recognized experts in continuous commissioning for the project including Cimetrics Analytika.
Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals Inc, branded as Jefferson Health, is a regional health system whose flagship hospital is Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Center City, Philadelphia. The health system’s hospitals serve as the teaching hospitals of Thomas Jefferson University.
The total energy spend for Jefferson is now more than $40 Million per year. The challenge – how to manage this for maximum savings. That’s where continuous commissioning comes into play. Read More.
Product Spotlight
New BACnet Explorer 
Our free BACnet Explorer allows you to easily discover devices and their objects and properties on your BACnet network and write to the writable values. Now, with our premium version you can also subscribe to COV notifications and get alerts when values are changed. You can save subscription parameters and load them the next time BACnet Explorer starts.
With a new snapshot feature discover what you need on your BACnet network you can save the results to a file and then open this file at any moment and compare the state of your BACnet network with a saved one. Explorer will show what was changed, (devices/objects or properties) and then you can save the comparison results to a .csv file with changed values. Learn More
What is new in SecuringBuildings.News
How to improve communication between people and smart buildings
While USC research shows people help smart buildings conserve energy when they dialogue with a computer persona nicknamed Ellie, who represents the building management.
In a new study, researchers found that subtle changes in design of virtual assistants results in behavioral changes that can help the environment. The researchers found people connect better with a computer-generated avatar that represents building management. They found that social banter between machine and people gets better results. Read More
Industry News
Commercial Building Automation Systems Market 2019-2026: Business Growth, Development Status Along Top Companies like AMAG Technology, Autani LLC, Cimetrics, Comfy, Daintree Networks, Digital Lumens, Gridium, Harman International, Intelligent Buildings LL
The report also provide innovative business strategies, competitive status of other companies which help to grow revenue and latest major and minor changes in technology has mention into report. Technological advancement such as IoT in building automation system, adoption of various protocols of building automation which lead to rise in demand for building automation. Read More
Bi-Weekly CyberSecurity Recap
Curated bi-weekly news summary for facility management professional, building owners and IT professionals who are interested in building security and Facility IT.
How to Secure Your Building and Property
Physical Security addresses actions you can take to protect buildings, property, and assets against intruders. When designing a physical security program, the three levels you need to protect are your outer perimeter, your inner perimeter, and your interior. If you can implement two or three forms of security at each level, then you will more than likely have an effective physical security system.
In early February, Google announced that Assistant would work with its home security and alarm system, Nest Secure. The problem: Users didn't know a microphone existed on their Nest security devices to begin with.
What’s in store in 2019: Global Cybersecurity
Each year brings new cybersecurity risks, and 2019 will be no exception. Expect privacy regulations to start to bite worldwide and more exploits targeting public clouds, while the proliferation of IoT devices will create a bigger attack surface for many organizations. But it’s not all bad news: a bigger emphasis on cloud security, increased collaboration to share threat intelligence, and AI will help organizations fight back.
Health systems are looking to shore up their business models in 2019 in the rapidly transforming healthcare industry, and a newly published survey reveals they've identified cybersecurity, data interoperability, and telehealth as their top priorities for next year, per the Center for Connected Medicine.
Building Controls Cybersecurity — How to Eat the Elephant
While more than 80% of all building automation systems are connected to the Internet, more than 3/4 of real estate organizations don’t have any type of building cybersecurity plan.
This article also lists three main reasons for the slow pace of change in building cybersecurity.
CABA research project “Intelligent Buildings and Cybersecurity”
The CABA Board of Directors and the CABA Intelligent & Integrated Buildings Council (IIBC) have selected the next CABA Landmark Research Study to be “Intelligent Buildings and Cybersecurity”. What steps has your organization taken to ensure that your company is safe from cybersecurity attacks?
This Intelligent Buildings and Cybersecurity study will examine the state of the cybersecurity and intelligent buildings industry, how to prevent cybersecurity attacks, how to deal with and manage cybersecurity attacks, the future direction of cybersecurity in intelligent buildings and specific recommendations going forward. Some of the topics that will be covered include: cybersecurity trends, evaluation of cybersecurity risks and solutions, inhibitors to industry growth, risk benefit analysis, how cybersecurity impacts the adoption of connected devices and services, business case analysis for cybersecurity and specific recommendations to the industry.
4 Strategies To Prevent Cybersecurity Attacks
Facility managers might not be able to turn a smart building or BAS into a Fort Knox of cybersecurity, but that doesn’t mean admitting defeat. This article outlines some strategies to keep in mind.
