The 2025 threat report is out from Waterfall & ICS Strive: 76 attacks with physical consequences in 2024 in heavy industry impacted over 1000 physical sites, nation-state attacks tripled, and more ICS/OT-capable malware was discovered in 2024 than the previous 5 years combined. Andrew covers all this and more, and then digs into the most important defensive developments, including: new cross-agency advice to stop using VPNs for remote access, new guidance asking questions about safety systems nobody else has asked, and a change in how we look at OT cyber risk - no longer "how likely is the attack?" but "how credible is the consequence?" Ask different questions, and we get different answers...
Andrew is a co-author of the threat report, has worked in OT / automation systems for 35 years with the last 20 in OT security, is the author of 3 books on the topic, and co-host of the Industrial Security Podcast, if you'd like to dig deeper.
707 - 5 St. S.W.
Third floor conference room A (← not the usual C)
There is $3 parking after 16:00 one block south of the meeting location, at the Centennial Parkade (Lot 54).
N.B. This is the fifth Tuesday of the month.
Snacks at 17:30. Meeting begins at 18:00.
Attendance is free for CUUG members, or $10 (cash or e-transfer) at the door for non-CUUG members.
RSVP to office at CUUG if you plan to attend.
Silicon Graphics is now no longer in business, but was once renowned for their hardware-accelerated realtime 3D computer graphics and virtual reality in the 1990s, including pioneering the famous OpenGL software framework. They are most famous for powering animation studios and special effects, like Industrial Light and Magic and Weta Digital, and many more. Of course, they ran UNIX on extremely powerful and expensive custom hardware, with a price tag to match. Since junior high school, I had always wanted an SGI. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, I was determined to make my dream happen.
Join me for a fascinating journey on how I found my dream machine, an Onyx2 mini-bar fridge sized "Deskside" graphical supercomputer, in some Aussie bloke's shed. How did it go from being sold "as-is" on eBay for "local pickup only" to a successful power-on at my house in Canada years later? And what do I plan to do with this thing?
Rees is a professional engineer in Alberta with 20 years of industry experience in electric power generation and transmission substation design, food and beverage plant automation, telecommunications, data centres and IT support. He has a degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Alberta.
For the five years before he founded OT Engineering, Rees was a Director of Industrial Security at Waterfall Security Solutions and a member of their renowned Industrial Security Team of OT subject matter experts.
In his spare time, he tinkers with old Japanese cars and vintage computers.
707 - 5 St. S.W.
Third floor conference room C
There is $3 parking after 16:00 one block south of the meeting location, at the Centennial Parkade (Lot 54).
Snacks at 17:30. Meeting begins at 18:00.
Attendance is free for CUUG members, or $10 (cash or e-transfer) at the door for non-CUUG members.
RSVP to office at CUUG if you plan to attend.
See the main CUUG web page for general information about CUUG.