A comprehensive guide to OT security reporting

From power grids to manufacturing plants, OT systems are increasingly connected, and with that connectivity comes risk. This is where OT security reporting steps in, not just as a cumbersome bureaucratic line item, but as the critical tool for translating technical and operational risk into actionable business insight.

Also, unlike IT security, where the focus is on data confidentiality, OT security prioritizes safety, availability, and reliability. A cyber incident in an IT environment might lead to data theft and financial loss, but a similar event in an OT setting could halt production, cause physical damage, or even endanger human lives. Effective security reporting is certainly the key to preventing such catastrophic outcomes. It provides leadership with a clear, actionable picture of the OT security posture, enabling them to make informed decisions and build a resilient organization.

In today’s blog post, we talk about the bare essentials of OT security reporting. As always, our experts from Shieldworkz are available, in case you have any questions or need any assistance with meeting your OT security reporting requirements.

Also, you may want to check our last post on OT Security Risk Register where we talk about how to put together and maintain what I call a “living and breathing” document that covers every OT security risk. In case you missed it, you can read the post here. 

With that out of the way, lets now begin by understanding how you can transform your approach to reporting and make it more robust and contextual.

Steps to transform your OT security reporting

A reactive, disorganized approach to OT security reporting is a recipe for disaster. To truly improve, organizations must move beyond simply documenting reporting requirements and create a structured, proactive system to cover all reporting needs across OT security functions in a comprehensive manner aligned to compliance mandates and OT security standards such as IEC 62443.

Here are some of the steps you can follow to improve OT security reporting:

Establish a robust security reporting plan: Security reporting should be driven by a playbook which also covers a reporting plan. This plan should define roles, responsibilities, and communication channels and targets for communication with formats. Who is on the reporting and response team? Who needs to be notified and when? What are the escalation paths for different types of incidents? A well-defined plan ensures that everyone knows their role and can act swiftly and decisively when a crisis hits to meet all reporting obligations without compromising the accuracy of response to the incident itself. It should also outline a clear process for post-incident review and analysis.

Standardize your reporting templates: In a high-stress situation, you don’t want to be scrambling for information. Standardized templates ensure that every critical detail is captured consistently. A good template should include sections for:

· Incident overview: Date, time, location, and a brief summary.

· Sharing interim and final reports: To regional CERTs or other regulatory bodies and to the Board or other responsible entities that need to be notified with certain level of information.

· Systems impacted: Which specific devices or processes were affected? What was the physical and financial impact?

· Threat vector: How did the attack originate? (e.g., a vulnerable network protocol, an unpatched system, or an insider threat).

· Response actions: What steps were taken to contain the threat and restore operations?

· Lessons learned: What could have been done differently, and how can the organization prevent a recurrence?

Updating the reporting playbooks

Automate data collection and analysis: Manual reporting is slow, prone to error, and provides a lagging view of your security posture. Leveraging OT-specific security platforms or Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) systems or even OT security platforms such as Shieldworkz with reporting capabilities can automate the collection of network logs, device alerts, and other crucial data. This automation allows for real-time visibility and helps analysts correlate seemingly unrelated events to detect sophisticated attacks. It also provides the rich data needed for comprehensive post-incident analysis.

Cultivate a culture of reporting: The human element is often the weakest link, but it can also be your strongest asset. Encourage all personnel, from plant operators to engineers, to report any anomaly, no matter how small it seems. This requires regular training and awareness programs that explain the "why" behind security protocols. A "no-blame" policy for initial reports can encourage transparency and help overcome the fear of professional repercussions.

Assess your reporting maturity: Conduct drills to test not just your incident response capabilities but also to measure your ability to generate accurate reports during an incident. This is something that many businesses fail to do which often results in the generation and sharing of reports that are inaccurate.  

Reporting essentials as per standards

Adhering to recognized standards is not just about compliance; it's about building a robust and defensible security program. Three key globally accepted standards provide essential guidance for OT security reporting.

NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF): NIST CSF provides a high-level, five-function framework: Identify, Protect, Detect, Respond, and Recover. Reporting is central to the "Respond" function, which focuses on taking action regarding a detected incident. It emphasizes documenting the event, analyzing its impact, and communicating with stakeholders. While voluntary, many organizations use it as the backbone of their cybersecurity program.

IEC 62443: This series of standards is the most widely adopted framework for securing industrial automation and control systems (IACS). IEC 62443-2-1 specifically details requirements for an IACS security program, including incident response and reporting. It mandates a formal process for handling incidents, requiring organizations to document event details and the actions taken to mitigate them. This standard is particularly valuable for its focus on the unique challenges of OT systems, such as legacy equipment and proprietary protocols.

NERC CIP: For the North American bulk electric power system, NERC Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP) standards are mandatory. These standards, such as CIP-008, are highly prescriptive, dictating what information must be reported, to whom (e.g., the Electricity Information Sharing and Analysis Center - E-ISAC), and within specific, often tight, timeframes. For entities operating in this sector, NERC CIP compliance is not a best practice, it is a legal requirement with serious penalties for non-compliance.

Meeting regional reporting requirements

The global regulatory landscape for OT security is rapidly evolving. What works in one country may not be sufficient in another. Organizations must be aware of and plan for regional differences.

United States: Beyond NERC CIP for the energy sector, the Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act of 2022 (CIRCIA) is a significant development. It requires critical infrastructure entities to report significant cyber incidents to the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has also issued security directives for pipelines and rail systems, which include mandatory incident reporting.

European Union: The EU's Network and Information Security (NIS) Directive is the foundational cybersecurity law for critical sectors. Its successor, the NIS2 Directive, broadens the scope of covered entities and tightens reporting requirements. Organizations must report significant incidents within a short period, with initial notifications required within 24 hours. This rapid reporting is designed to facilitate coordinated action and information sharing across member states.

In other geographies you may have to report to a CERT or to a cybersecurity regulatory body or both.

Other key considerations

Effective reporting is a continuous process that goes beyond a simple post-mortem. It requires a strategic mindset and a focus on metrics.

Customize the report to the audience and agency: A report for the C-suite should be different from one for a regulator. Leadership needs to understand the business impact, such as financial loss and operational downtime, while a regulator may ask for granular details like IP addresses, event duration, incident response measures triggered, malware signatures, and log data. Compliance reports must be always structured to meet specific regulatory requirements.

Proactive vs. reactive reporting: While incident reports are reactive, a robust security program also uses reporting proactively. Regular reports on vulnerability assessments, patch management status, and security awareness training participation can help an organization identify and mitigate risks before they lead to a full-blown incident. These proactive reports provide a forward-looking view and help prioritize resources.

Leverage metrics and KPIs: You can't manage what you don't measure. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) transform reporting from a chore into a powerful management tool. Useful metrics for OT security include:

· Mean Time to Detect (MTTD): How long does it take to identify an incident?

· Mean Time to Respond (MTTR): How long does it take to contain and resolve an incident?

· Number of incidents by type: Are you seeing more phishing attacks, or are physical access incidents on the rise? This data helps you identify trends.

· Number of false positives

· Systems impacted

The Post-Incident Review: The most valuable part of the reporting process is the after-action review. This is a candid, blameless discussion about what worked, what didn't, and what can be improved. The findings from this review should be formally documented and used to update your incident response plan, improve security controls, and inform future training. This continuous improvement cycle is the hallmark of a mature and resilient security program.

In a world where digital and physical systems are converging, the importance of OT security reporting cannot be overstated. It's the mechanism that ensures the safety of our critical infrastructure, the reliability of our industrial processes, and the long-term resilience of our organizations.

Talk to you tomorrow.

If you haven’t done so yet, reach out to Shieldworkz to learn more about our OT Incident Response services that also cover reporting.

Here’s a bit more about our Incident Response services.