DHS tests manufacturing and transportation sectors in ‘Cyber Storm’ exercise
The Department of Homeland Security hosted a global cybersecurity drill Tuesday to “push participants out of their comfort zone” by practicing information sharing at a time of heightened risk to critical infrastructure, top DHS cybersecurity official Jeanette Manfra said.
As CyberScoop reported, Manfra told reporters that “cyber threats to critical infrastructure continue to grow and represent one of the most serious national security challenges we must confront.” Exercise participants will respond to a simulated global threat to infrastructure over the course of the three-day exercise.
This week’s exercise includes participants from the transportation and “critical manufacturing” sectors, the latter which DHS recently warned Russian government hackers were targeting in a multi-stage attack campaign. Aviation giant Boeing was hit by malware last month in an attack that stirred fears that the potent WannaCry ransomware had struck again.
More than 1,000 people, including corporate executives, law enforcement, intelligence, and defense officials, are participating in this sixth iteration of the exercise known as Cyber Storm, which DHS touts as “the most extensive government-sponsored cybersecurity exercise of its kind.” While a group of participants gathered at Secret Service headquarters in Washington, D.C., many others joined the drill from their own offices across the country.
Read more about the exercise and Manfra’s comments on CyberScoop.
