Q&A with ABB Cybersecurity Leader Ragnar Schierholz

The importance of cybersecurity in industrial operations cannot be overstated, increasingly so faced with today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape.

This is emphasised by Ragnar Schierholz, Global Cyber Security Portfolio Manager for the Process Automation business area of ABB, which covers the likes of oil and gas, hydrocarbon processing, water and wastewater and power generation. Since joining ABB in 2006, Ragnar has held various pivotal roles, including the Global Head of Cyber Security for PA in R&D.

In his current role, he spearheads the strategic direction and implementation of cybersecurity solutions and services aimed at bolstering the resilience of critical infrastructure against a constantly evolving cyber threat landscape.

Ragnar advocates that energy and utilities businesses should not be complacent when it comes to security while emphasising the challenges faced when it comes to mitigating cyber risks.

Here, in this exclusive sit-down with Energy Digital, he discusses the innovative measures being adopted to enhance cybersecurity awareness and preparedness across the energy sector and how cutting-edge AI-driven solutions are being utilised to detect and respond to sophisticated cyber attacks in real-time.

Q. How can energy businesses effectively mitigate the evolving threat of cyber attacks, particularly in light of the industry's increasing reliance on interconnected digital systems? What proactive measures should they prioritise to bolster their cyber resilience?

Adopting new operational approaches and new technologies comes with new risks, but if managed well those are usually outweighed by the benefits of those modernisations.

To mitigate the evolving threat of cyber attacks, energy businesses should prioritise a multi-layered approach to cybersecurity. Key measures include conducting regular risk assessments to identify vulnerabilities, implementing robust security protocols such as encryption and multi-factor authentication and ensuring all systems are always up-to-date with the latest security patches. 

Additionally, companies should invest in real-time threat detection and response systems, and establish strict access controls and segmentation of their network to limit potential breaches. 

Q. Building a culture of cybersecurity awareness is crucial in safeguarding against cyber threats. How do you ensure ongoing education and reinforcement of cybersecurity best practices?

Building a culture of cybersecurity awareness involves continuous education and engagement at all levels of an organisation. 

To ensure ongoing education and reinforcement of best practices, companies should regularly — or even, continuously — conduct training sessions and simulations that mimic real-life cyber threat scenarios, making the training as practical and relevant as possible.

Small educational pieces each focusing on a particular routine behaviour and how it relates to the security posture can work wonders in awareness and adoption of best practices.

It’s also beneficial to provide employees with regular updates about the latest cybersecurity trends and threats.

Encouraging a culture where cybersecurity is everyone’s responsibility can be achieved through clear communication and visible support from management, reinforcing the importance of vigilance and compliance with security protocols. The more devices you have — likely several per employee these days — the greater surface area you create for a system intrusion. 

Q. Given the dynamic nature of cyber threats, how are cybersecurity professionals leveraging AI and advanced analytics to detect and respond to sophisticated attacks in real-time within the energy industry? 

Cybersecurity professionals are increasingly leveraging AI and advanced analytics to address sophisticated attacks in real-time by employing systems that can learn from data to detect anomalies and potential threats quickly. 

In dynamic environments, AI can help to focus on the most relevant changes. For example, AI-driven behavioural analytics tools analyse patterns of network traffic to identify deviations that may indicate a breach. Machine learning algorithms can also predict and neutralise zero-day exploits by analysing previous incidents. 

AI-enhanced intrusion detection systems (IDS) automatically adapt to new threats as they emerge, improving their detection capabilities continuously. These AI-driven solutions enable quicker response times and more effective mitigation strategies, significantly enhancing the security posture of critical energy infrastructure.

In more deterministic environments like industrial control systems, benefits of AI may not be as obvious. But AI solutions can still help to reduce the cognitive burden on the human decision makers such as an SOC analyst by analysing a much larger context in much shorter time than a human could – thus improving the human’s decision in this example how to assess and respond to an alarm.

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