Overview
Critical infrastructure organizations — including those in energy, water, transportation, and communications — face various types of cyber threats.
- Threat actors steal or compromise account credentials, giving them a means of establishing initial access with which they can conduct secondary attacks.
- Ransomware attacks oftentimes disrupt IT and OT networks, which can limit the public's access to services and information.
- Supply chain attacks exploit vulnerabilities in software used by critical infrastructure organizations, suppliers, vendors, and/or partners to facilitate network access.
When successful, these and other cyber threats can disrupt critical infrastructure organizations' ability to deliver essential services. This can endanger national security and public safety.
Top Security Concerns and Solutions for Critical Infrastructure
Threats against critical infrastructure organizations can disrupt essential services, cause physical damage, and compromise sensitive data.
CIS provides trusted, community-developed cybersecurity resources to help infrastructure operators meet regulatory requirements, strengthen their defenses and improve resilience.
Maintaining Operational Continuity
- Simplify Secure Configuration Management in the Cloud with CIS Hardened Images®
- Evaluate Existing Configurations for Compliance with CIS Benchmarks with CIS-CAT® Pro
- Strengthen Your Defenses against Common Cyber Threats with the CIS Controls®
- Tailor Your Application of CIS Controls® for Industrial Environments
Compliance and Regulatory Requirements
- Receive OT/ICS Regulatory Alignment Guidance with the CIS Controls®
- Streamline Your Implementation of CIS Security Best Practices with CIS SecureSuite®
- Implement and Assess Your Security Posture Against the CIS Controls® with the CIS Risk Assessment Method (RAM)
- Explore Cybersecurity Improvements to Strengthen Critical Infrastructure for U.S. SLTTs
- Start Your Journey of Establishing Essential Cyber Hygiene
Responding to ICS/SCADA Cyber Threats In Real-Time
- Proactively Block Requests to Known Malicious Domains at Bay with MDBR+
- Monitor Your Network for Malicious Activity with Albert Network Monitoring and Management
- Improve Your Cyber Defenses with Help from the MS-ISAC®
- Receive Actionable Insights of Your Multidimensional Threat Environment through ThreatWA™
- Subject Your Defenses to a Simulated Cyber Attack with Penetration Testing
Insecure Remote Access to ICS/OT Systems
Common Threats
More than 300 critical infrastructure organizations had been affected by the Medusa ransomware attack as of December 2024.1
RANSOMWARE80% of critical infrastructure entities experience email-based security breaches yearly from phishing.2
PHISHINGThe average cost of a data breach in 2024 reached roughly $4.88 million globally.3
DATA BREACHTargeted Data
Information (PII)
Credentials
Property
Intelligence
Logs
- https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/alerts/2025/03/12/cisa-and-partners-release-cybersecurity-advisory-medusa-ransomware
- https://www.securitymagazine.com/articles/100713-80-of-critical-infrastructure-entities-affected-by-email-breaches
- https://www.securitymagazine.com/articles/101321-488m-was-the-average-cost-of-a-data-breach-in-2024