Two Citizens IT Security employees participated in an emergency response exercise hosted by the Indiana National Guard on Saturday, August 14.
First responders, military personnel, and search and rescue teams congregated at the Muscatatuck Urban Training Center in Jennings County to simulate emergency response to a combined physical and cyber emergency. Along with practicing responding to the aftermath of an earthquake, the Indiana National Guard tested the additional response of its incident command leadership with a mock cyberattack on a water utility. Scott Miller, Manager, Security & Compliance, and Louis Gattone, Information Security Engineer I, along with other cyber experts from IU Health and Pondurance worked together to simulate a cyberattack on a water treatment facility.
Miller and Gattone also gave a presentation to National Guard leadership, state officials, and other Indiana water utilities on measures that can be put in place to prevent such a cyber incident.
“Operation Homeland Defender was a fascinating exercise to be a part of,” said Miller. “I had no idea the extent to which the state practices for emergencies like this and the level of planning that goes into them. I appreciated the opportunity to share some of our cyber expertise and help others be better prepared to prevent or respond to a cyber event like the one we simulated.”
