< PreviousUnbreaking the record for cyber-attacks cyber attacks www.networkseuropemagazine.com 40Fortunately, remote telemetry units (RTUs) allow for better control and visibility when accompanied by advanced development and deployment techniques. Here, Matthew Hawkridge, Chief Technology Officer at Ovarro, the supplier and manufacturer of remote monitoring technologies, explains why secure RTUs can mitigate threats against critical national infrastructure. But why the rise in incidents? One explanation is that the increased move towards digitalisation and Industry 4.0 has raised cyber-security risks. Cyber-attacks can also affect critical network infrastructure (CNI) like energy, water or oil and gas networks — the UK Government’s National Cyber Security Council (NCSC) is always concerned about the prospect of Russia or China hacking into Britain’s water supply chain. Cyberthreats to CNIs include espionage, targeted attacks from malicious actors, such as hostile states and criminals, According to Forbes, 2020 broke all records for data lost in breaches and sheer numbers of cyber-attacks on companies, individuals and governments. These threats are also becoming more sophisticated with emerging technologies like machine learning, artificial intelligence and 5G. Matthew Hawkridge Chief Technology Officer Ovarro record cks Remote telemetry units (RTUs) helping prevent cyber-attacks against critical infrastructure cyber attacks www.networkseuropemagazine.com 41Depend On Us For more information please call +44 (0)1925 428 380 or email uksales@trend-networks.com 10G Ethernet Troubleshooter and Bandwidth Tester D E PE N D O N U S | D E PE N D O N U S | SignalTEK 10G www.trend-networks.com © 2021 TREND NETWORKS LIMITED. All Rights Reserved. SignalTEK 10G measures the maximum network bandwidth available, identifies bottlenecks and discovers opportunities to increase bandwidth without replacing expensive data cabling. Pressure on networks is increasing and downtime is expensive. Fix it fast with SignalTEK 10G www.networkseuropemagazine.comand accidental data loss. All have the potential to disrupt our lives and damage the economy. But how can CNI operators embrace digital transformation and all its benefits without inviting cyber- security risks? The answer lies in RTUs and deployment with the latest NCSC Cyber Assessment Framework (CAF). Secure ease-of-access For decades, telemetry unit systems have been used for remote monitoring of power consumption and battery backup in networks for energy, water and telecommunications by gathering information about critical assets. They work on the simple premise that, if the condition of an asset is understood, then it can be managed efficiently and respond quickly to change. There is immense value in being able to optimise operations and detect and respond faster to impending issues. These systems are also equipped for WiFi and the advent of 5G — for example, for process plants with servers in the cloud or in a nearby, air-conditioned control room, the RTU gathers information about critical assets. RTUs are emerging as one of the drivers for the IoT because they can gather and manage large volumes of data for analysis. Also, they are secure against cyber-attacks. But how are these efforts applied in a real-world setting, and where do RTUs fit in? Better Industry 4.0 PetroChina Southwest Oil and Gas Field Company approached Ovarro to support a digital upgrade project at its Chongqing Gas Mine. The mine is located in the jurisdiction of 277 industrial gas wells with a daily production capacity of 20 million cubic meters. Specifically, the customer wanted to improve remote monitoring of all its key gas wells with better use of data. A key feature of this digital transformation would be the installation of an internet protocol (IP) camera at each site, giving regular images of the well head. But how could this be achieved securely? The solution was to install a total of 70 solar- powered TBox RTUs within a supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system. The RTUs have the responsibility of capturing and transmitting an image snapshot each hour, or upon an alarm. In the case of a communications outage, the historian capabilities of the RTU can store months-worth of historical data on pressure, process shut-off valve position and more. This can be backed up and transmitted to the central control station later, helping protect against data loss. This example shows that CNI managers can embrace the advantages of Industry 4.0 without compromising cyber- security. With the right technology like RTUs in place, let’s hope that 2020’s cyber-attack records remain unbroken in the future. n cyber attacks www.networkseuropemagazine.com 43Ross Duke Technical Director MLL Telecom Today’s changing network landscape means enterprise organisations in the public and private sectors increasingly require managed network providers. The path to successful SD-WAN implementation SD-WAN implementation www.networkseuropemagazine.com 44essful ntation These must be capable of offering not only network design, consultancy and monitoring, but also the technical knowledge and skills necessary for managing emerging and future technologies. The implementation of SD-WAN is a prime example. On paper, the SD-WAN virtual architecture means enterprises now have more scope for optimising MPLS while also leveraging less expensive broadband and wireless/LTE connections for securely and cost-effectively connecting users to applications. This can help drive ‘internet first’ agendas. However, while there are undoubtedly several key benefits to an organisation taking the SD-WAN route, these can’t all be realised without first having an in-depth knowledge of the technology itself as well as WANs in general. SD-WAN is not a plug and play solution - despite the claims of technology vendors over the years. SD-WAN implementation www.networkseuropemagazine.com 45Certainly, running SD-WAN as an overlay on top of MPLS is a compelling approach but getting the configuration right – and right for your traffic and use-cases – becomes more critical than ever. This is why, in the managed-network space, we are seeing more organisations looking to the providers to run and operate SD-WAN networks, but delegating access to provide customer-permitted changes. This can offer the best of both worlds whereby the IT department can make their own changes quickly and easily, usually through a GUI, while always knowing they have the safety net of the MSP to fall back on. Furthermore, in these times of embracing new ways of working, having the flexibility of designing complex networks that allow the right people to access the right data - securely and efficiently - makes SD-WAN unbeatable. There are several more benefits to be achieved through an effective SD-WAN deployment, including reduced downtime with instantaneous failover between redundant WAN circuits, and enhanced overall network performance by routing specific applications based on their characteristics over the most suitable and best performing WAN link. Moreover, SD-WAN paves the way to migrate easily with minimal disruption between different WAN access technologies, ie FTTC to FTTP. Being able to natively aggregate bandwidth across multiple WAN links to improve performance but without the need for constant manual tuning is another key advantage, as is defining site types and pushing configurations/ policies to sites from central controllers which significantly improves deployment rollout timescales. SD-WAN is not a plug and play solution - despite the claims of technology vendors over the years. SD-WAN implementation www.networkseuropemagazine.com 46SD-WAN’s powerful reporting also allows IT deeper insights into what their networks are doing, not just samples of data showing the volume of traffic being consumed. They can see which users, applications or websites are consuming bandwidth, building a detailed picture over time in ways that just weren’t available before outside of using expensive network performance orchestration tools. However, it cannot be stressed enough that the successful delivery of SD-WAN solutions is completely dependent on having an in-depth understanding of WAN and SD-WAN technology - either in-house or by utilising a technology partner experienced in delivering these solutions. This is due to various factors influencing the implementation. For example, many building blocks exist to create any SD-WAN solution including underlays, overlays, orchestration tools and application-based routing policies. These components have inter-dependencies on each other in respect of the order in which they are implemented and must be considered and accounted for at the design phase. There are also several considerations on how the SD-WAN solution will integrate with the LAN, for example, if multiple overlays are provided in the SD-WAN fabric, how will these hand off to the LAN? Alternatively, and perhaps in addition, if Secure Access Services Edge (SASE) is to be used and integrated with the SD-WAN solution, how does an organisation assess local versus centralised breakout to the internet and what are the pros/cons of each approach? Moreover, how is the security policy of the organisation considered as part of this design process? In summary, the case for rolling out SD-WAN as part of any network infrastructure is now at the stage where enterprise organisations should be asking “why not?” over “why?” but at the same time, successful delivery is highly dependent on fully understanding both WAN and SD-WAN technology. n SD-WAN implementation www.networkseuropemagazine.com 47agile networks www.networkseuropemagazine.com 48 Agile For 2021 and the next few years, we’ll see organisations looking at spinning up their digital infrastructure, making it agile, secure and - most importantly - future-ready for any such unforeseen circumstances. According to a recent survey by IDC, 64% of companies in Germany are planning to deploy modern network architectures in the next 24 months. The pandemic has certainly shifted the priorities and increased the focus on network transformation. While about half of the companies surveyed by IDC see their own network as a pure cost centre, the other 50% attribute a transformative character to it and consider the network as an elementary platform for day-to-day business and even as a key pillar of innovation. The common attribute among all these companies – they have started to understand the relevance and importance of networks. 2020 completely redefined the ways companies operate and function. Employees switched to Work from Home overnight to ensure business continuity and customer interactions became completely virtual. However, the network infrastructure of many companies was not sufficiently prepared for this. They had to rely on quick-fix solutions while at the same time thinking about how they could cope with such situations in the future. Song Toh Vice President - Global Network Services Tata Communications agile networks www.networkseuropemagazine.com 49 a key pillar for innovation ile and secure networkNext >