The Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) has teamed up with its international cyber security partners to release a guide on implementing smart city technologies safely and effectively.
Launching the guide Cybersecurity Best Practices for Smart Cities, ACSC said smart city technologies presented fantastic opportunities for more innovative and sustainable communities, but they also introduced risks to security and critical infrastructure.
“Smart cities can create safer, more efficient, more resilient communities through technological innovation and data-driven decision making,” ACSC said.
“However, this opportunity also introduces potential vulnerabilities that are an attractive target for criminals and cyber threat actors,” it said.
“Communities and organisations implementing smart city technologies should account for these potential vulnerabilities as part of their overall risk management approach.”
ACSC said the guide provided three recommendations for communities and organisations looking to implement smart city technologies: Secure planning and design; Proactive supply chain risk management; and Operational resilience.
It said several specific strategies for secure planning and design were provided in the guide, to include enforcing multi-factor authentication; implement zero trust architecture; protect internet-facing services; and patch systems and applications in a timely manner.
“Proactive supply chain risk management recommendations include setting clear requirements for software, hardware, and Internet-of-Things supply chains, and carefully reviewing agreements with third-party vendors, such as managed service providers and cloud service providers,” ACSC said.
“In the event of a compromise, operational resilience strategies, such as workforce training and incident response and recovery plans, can prepare organisations to isolate affected systems and operate infrastructure with as little disruption as possible.”
The 13-page Smart Cities guide can be accessed at this PS News link.
