Belden, exida pact on cyber-, industrial network security

Belden (NYSE: BDC) has signed a global agreement with exida, a consulting firm specializing in industrial automation safety and cybersecurity services. The partnership is expected to enable the two companies to combine their areas of expertise the better to offer a single, streamlined source for all of their customers’ industrial network security needs.

“We’ve worked with exida for a number of years, tapping into their best-in-class risk analysis and security recommendations. Now, we’ve formalized that partnership and when our customers ask, 'How much security do I need?' We can make their next steps seamless,” comments Frank Williams, senior product manager at Belden’s Tofino Security. “exida’s experience in the industrial setting is the ideal match to our existing portfolio of physical and cyber security solutions. Together, we will help ensure the uptime and reliability of our customers’ networks is not compromised.”

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The Belden-exida partnership is intended to provide automation suppliers, system integrators, manufacturers and end-users with a simpler, more efficient process for securing their industrial networks. With a single-source coordinating the details, from the initial security assessment to the installation of the solution, customers can thereby optimize their industrial network resources, resulting in maximized uptime and enhanced operational productivity.

Demand for reliable automation control systems, as well as secure delivery of and access to information, continue to be critical issues in business today, notes Belden. The company says it "recognizes the challenge of knowing where to start, how much security is needed, and how to implement the right security measures -- and continues to build its end-to-end offering of industrial security solutions through innovation and strategic partnerships.

“While many think of deliberate attacks, like hackers, terrorists and malware, the reality is 80 percent of incidents that bring a network down are unintentional issues, like field configuration changes, malformed traffic, data storms or technician errors,” continues Williams. “exida’s analysis of the true threats to safety and security will help companies take the proper precautions to protect their network. Companies can directly associate security measures with network reliability.”

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exida cites as its primary focus the assessing of new or existing control systems, as well as policies and procedures, to help customers identify and correct vulnerabilities. After collecting and analyzing the data, exida can train personnel and contractors to improve their cyber security countermeasures, among other services.

“Our experience is unique in that we understand the devices, systems and applications used by industrial process control and factory automation engineers, as well as the IT side of security,” says John Cusimano, director of the cyber security division at exida. “After we perform our assessments or trainings, Belden can step in to address and resolve any security issues we identify. This partnership takes our combined services to the next level to deliver an all-in-one offering.”

Source:Utility Products