OT and Energy: Cybersecurity at the Heart of a Critical Infrastructure Shift

To spotlight the rising cyber threats in the energy sector and explore how organisations can stay ahead, Thales hosted a global webinar dedicated to Operational Technology (OT) security. Now available for replay, this session offers an in-depth look at the tactics of today’s most active threat actors and how resilience starts with understanding the entire energy lifecycle.

A Sector Under Pressure: Why Energy Is on Every Attacker’s Radar

Energy systems are no longer just technical backbones, they’ve become strategic targets. As geopolitical tensions escalate and infrastructure becomes increasingly digitised, cyberattacks on the energy sector have surged in frequency, impact, and complexity.

From politically motivated hacktivist campaigns to high-impact malware like Frostygoop, capable of cutting off heating to hundreds of buildings, attackers are aiming not just to steal data but to disrupt lives, economies, and national stability.

More Than Just Technology: When Disruption Hits the Physical World

Operational Technology cyberattacks stand out because of their immediate and concrete impact. In the energy sector, a breach doesn't just compromise systems or data, it directly affects people’s lives. Heating systems can go down in the middle of winter, hospitals may lose power, and industrial safety mechanisms can fail.

This isn’t hypothetical. During the webinar, Thales experts discussed how different types of attacks (such as DDoS, ransomware, or malware) exploit vulnerabilities at every stage of the energy value chain. These threats can begin at the generation phase, where disruptions to energy cells are possible, and continue through transmission, where smart grids and IIoT devices are exposed. Even at the consumption level, attackers can use social engineering or exploit outdated systems to cause significant damage.

What emerged clearly is that many vulnerabilities remain invisible until an incident occurs. Often, entry points are underestimated or poorly secured, especially when legacy infrastructure meets modern connectivity.

In this context, protecting OT systems is not just a technical challenge. It is a strategic necessity for ensuring business continuity, public safety, and national resilience.

Complex Systems, Fragmented Defences: A Perfect Storm for Attackers

Energy infrastructures are vast, interconnected, and often ageing. Add smart grids, IoT devices, and remote access into the mix, and you get a fragile ecosystem that threat actors are quick to exploit.

The challenge? Protecting this complexity without slowing innovation. From generation to consumption, security must be embedded — not bolted on.

Intelligence, Regulation, Resilience: The New Pillars of Cyber Defence

In today’s high-stakes energy environment, surviving cyber threats takes more than just detection tools or firewalls. It demands a strategic approach that blends real-time threat intelligence, regulatory compliance, and long-term operational resilience.

Global standards such as ISO 50001 (Energy Management), IEC 61850 (communication in electrical substations), and ASHRAE 90.1 (energy efficiency in buildings) aren’t just checkboxes for audits, they serve as foundational blueprints to secure the entire energy lifecycle. These frameworks help organisations align their cybersecurity measures with industry best practices, while ensuring interoperability, safety, and performance.

Compliance is not just about avoiding penalties. It’s about creating a structured environment where security controls are predictable, repeatable, and auditable. During the webinar, experts highlighted how adopting these standards can help organisations identify weak spots, streamline incident response, and future-proof their infrastructure against evolving threats.

By integrating these regulatory pillars with contextual threat intelligence and automation, energy actors gain a dual advantage: the credibility of compliance and the agility to adapt in real time. It's this combination that transforms cybersecurity from a reactive defence to a proactive business enabler.

When the Alarm Rings for Real: Lessons from a High-Stakes Cyber Incident

For those seeking concrete takeaways, the webinar featured a detailed case study drawn from a real cyberattack on a major energy player.

Our experts broke down the sequence of events, highlighting how the attackers infiltrated the system, which vulnerabilities were exploited, and how the response unfolded (both the successes and the gaps).

It offered a rare, behind-the-scenes look at managing a cyber crisis in an environment where operational continuity is critical and every decision can have real-world consequences.

Now Available: A Replay for Security Leaders Who Need to Stay Ahead

Whether you're overseeing OT infrastructure, managing compliance, or shaping cybersecurity strategy, this webinar offers valuable insights into where the energy sector stands and where it must go next.

The full webinar replay is now available. Dive into the key takeaways and see how Thales is helping shape a more resilient energy future.