Environmental Controls

5 automated security scanners

Water System Security

Purpose: The Water System Security Scanner is designed to identify and assess potential vulnerabilities in water detection systems, control system security, and contamination monitoring within a company’s infrastructure. Its primary objective is to ensure the integrity and safety of the water supply by detecting and mitigating any threats that could compromise its quality or operational efficiency.

What It Detects:

Water Detection Systems: The scanner identifies the presence and functionality of water leak detection sensors, ensuring they are properly installed and maintained through regular testing and calibration.
Control System Security Vulnerabilities: It scans for vulnerabilities in both hardware and software components of the control system, including unauthorized access points and weak authentication mechanisms to protect against cyber threats.
Contamination Monitoring: The scanner identifies monitoring devices used for detecting contaminants in the water supply, verifying their correct functioning through regular maintenance and calibration records.
Compliance with Regulations: It ensures adherence to relevant environmental and safety regulations by reviewing compliance certifications related to water system security and monitoring, as well as validating company policies against industry best practices.
Incident Response Plans: The scanner assesses the presence and effectiveness of incident response plans for potential breaches or contamination events, ensuring that emergency protocols are updated and staffed appropriately.

Inputs Required:

domain (string): Primary domain to analyze (e.g., acme.com) - This input allows the scanner to target specific domains for analysis.
company_name (string): Company name for statement searching (e.g., “Acme Corporation”) - This helps in identifying relevant company information during the scanning process.

Business Impact: Ensuring the security and integrity of a company’s water supply infrastructure is crucial for maintaining operational continuity, protecting sensitive data, and complying with stringent environmental regulations. Any vulnerabilities or breaches can lead to significant disruptions, regulatory fines, and reputational damage.

Risk Levels:

Critical: This severity level would be triggered by severe vulnerabilities that could directly compromise the water supply’s integrity or safety, such as unpatched software affecting critical control functions.
High: High risks are associated with significant security weaknesses that can be exploited to gain unauthorized access or data manipulation, such as weak authentication mechanisms in the control system.
Medium: Medium risk findings involve less severe vulnerabilities that could be exploited but do not pose an immediate threat to critical systems, such as outdated software versions affecting non-critical functionalities.
Low: Low severity risks include informational issues like minor compliance gaps or documentation updates needed for better security practices.
Info: This level includes purely informative findings that may improve the overall security posture without being inherently risky.

If specific risk levels are not detailed in the README, they can be inferred based on typical scanner outputs and potential impacts.

Example Findings:

A critical vulnerability was detected in the water detection sensors affecting their ability to accurately report leaks, which could lead to undetected system failures potentially causing significant property damage.
A high risk identified unauthorized access points through a weak password policy for the control system’s web interface, posing a threat of remote manipulation and data theft.

HVAC Security

Purpose: The HVAC Security Scanner is designed to identify and mitigate potential vulnerabilities, air quality issues, and contamination risks within the HVAC systems of an organization. By detecting control system vulnerabilities, monitoring air quality, and assessing contamination sources, this scanner ensures that environmental controls are robust and secure, thereby safeguarding both employee health and organizational assets.

What It Detects:

Control System Vulnerabilities: The scanner identifies outdated or unpatched HVAC software versions, detects weak authentication mechanisms in HVAC control panels, and verifies encryption protocols for data transmitted between HVAC components.
Air Quality Monitoring: It checks the presence of air quality sensors, their calibration status, analyzes historical reports for anomalies or trends indicating poor air quality, and ensures compliance with industry standards such as ASHRAE.
Contamination Detection: The scanner identifies potential contamination sources within the HVAC system, evaluates filtration systems’ effectiveness in removing contaminants, and monitors unusual patterns that may indicate recent contamination events.

Inputs Required:

domain (string): Primary domain to analyze (e.g., acme.com)
company_name (string): Company name for statement searching (e.g., “Acme Corporation”)

Business Impact: This scanner is crucial as it directly impacts the security and health of employees within an organization, potentially leading to significant financial losses due to system downtime or remediation efforts. It also affects compliance with regulatory standards related to indoor air quality and cybersecurity.

Risk Levels:

Critical: The scanner flags outdated HVAC software versions that have not been patched against known vulnerabilities.
High: Weak authentication mechanisms in HVAC control panels can lead to unauthorized access, potentially compromising the entire system’s security posture.
Medium: Ineffective filtration systems or significant anomalies in air quality reports may indicate operational inefficiencies and potential health hazards.
Low: Compliance with industry standards for indoor air quality is considered a low risk if there are no known issues; however, it remains important for continuous improvement.
Info: Informational findings such as mentions of security policies or compliance certifications in the trust center provide valuable insights but do not pose immediate risks.

Example Findings:

“Outdated HVAC software version detected on domain acme.com.”
“Weak authentication mechanism found in the HVAC control panel, posing a high risk to system integrity.”

Power Systems Security

Purpose: The Power Systems Security Scanner is designed to identify vulnerabilities and security issues in UPS systems, generators, and power quality monitoring. Its purpose is to ensure the reliability and integrity of critical infrastructure by detecting potential threats and gaps in security measures.

What It Detects:

Identifies unauthorized access points in UPS management interfaces.
Detects weak or default credentials for UPS devices.
Checks for outdated firmware versions that may contain security flaws.
Verifies physical security measures around generator enclosures.
Assesses remote monitoring and control vulnerabilities of generators.
Ensures proper authentication mechanisms are in place for generator access.
Evaluates the accuracy and reliability of power quality monitoring systems.
Identifies potential misconfigurations or lack of alerts in monitoring devices.
Checks for regular maintenance schedules and logs to ensure system integrity.
Verifies adherence to industry standards such as NERC CIP, ISO/IEC 27001, and SOC 2.
Ensures compliance certifications are up-to-date and publicly accessible.
Assesses the presence and effectiveness of incident response plans specific to power system failures.

Inputs Required:

domain (string): Primary domain to analyze (e.g., acme.com) - This input is necessary for scanning various aspects of the specified domain, including its security documentation and policies.
company_name (string): Company name for statement searching (e.g., “Acme Corporation”) - This helps in contextualizing the search for relevant documents within the company’s online presence.

Business Impact: This scanner is crucial as it directly impacts the reliability of critical infrastructure, which can have significant consequences on operations and safety. It aids in identifying potential threats that could lead to system failures or data breaches, thereby affecting business continuity and compliance with regulatory standards.

Risk Levels:

Critical: Conditions where unauthorized access points are identified without proper authentication mechanisms, leading to direct system compromise.
High: Presence of outdated firmware versions that pose a risk of known security flaws being exploited.
Medium: Misconfigurations or lack of alerts in power quality monitoring systems which might not be immediately critical but could lead to operational inefficiencies over time.
Low: Compliance with standards such as ISO/IEC 27001, where minor deviations from recommended practices may exist without significant risk.
Info: Informational findings regarding regular maintenance schedules and logs that do not directly impact security or operations but are important for maintaining system integrity.

Example Findings:

A critical finding could be the detection of a default password in the UPS management interface, which poses an immediate threat to the system’s security.
A high risk might involve outdated firmware on generators that is known to have numerous vulnerabilities exploited by malicious actors.

Environmental Monitoring

Purpose: The Environmental Monitoring Scanner is designed to detect gaps in sensor coverage, evaluate alert thresholds, and ensure proper response integration to maintain robust environmental controls within an organization.

What It Detects:

Identifies areas where sensors are either missing or insufficient for critical asset monitoring.
Evaluates the effectiveness of current alert threshold settings against actual risk levels.
Confirms that environmental monitoring systems are integrated with incident response protocols, including automated responses and escalation procedures.
Ensures compliance with industry standards regarding sensor density and proper documentation alignment with system configurations.
Analyzes public policy pages for transparency about environmental monitoring practices and verifies the accuracy of trust center information related to these practices.

Inputs Required:

domain (string): The primary domain of the organization under analysis, such as “acme.com,” which is used to search for relevant company policies and documentation.
company_name (string): The name of the company, e.g., “Acme Corporation,” which helps in searching specific statements or policies related to environmental monitoring within the domain.

Business Impact: Ensuring robust environmental controls through proper sensor coverage and effective alert threshold settings is crucial for maintaining a secure operational environment. Poor configuration can lead to inadequate response to critical events, potentially resulting in significant disruptions or breaches of sensitive data.

Risk Levels:

Critical: Identifies severe gaps in sensor placement that could directly impact safety or compliance with regulatory standards.
High: Indicates deficiencies in alert threshold settings that may fail to trigger appropriate responses for high-risk conditions, potentially leading to significant adverse events.
Medium: Points out areas where configurations might be adequate but suboptimal, requiring further optimization to enhance overall security posture.
Low: Covers findings of minor issues that do not significantly affect the security or operational integrity of the system but may benefit from improvement for enhanced performance and compliance.
Info: Includes any informational findings that provide insights into areas where improvements could be made without immediate risk, contributing to a more secure environment over time.

If specific conditions for these risks are not detailed in the README, they have been inferred based on the purpose of the scanner and its potential impact on organizational security.

Example Findings:

A critical asset is found to be unmonitored due to gaps in sensor coverage.
An alert threshold setting that was initially considered appropriate has been identified as overly lenient after evaluation, potentially missing important events.

Fire Suppression Systems

Purpose: The Fire Suppression Systems Scanner is designed to evaluate and document the coverage, maintenance status, and integration of fire suppression systems within an organization. It aims to ensure compliance with safety standards and security protocols by identifying areas not covered, verifying system components’ functionality, assessing integration with other security measures, checking adherence to relevant safety standards, and reviewing available documentation.

What This Scanner Detects:

System Coverage Analysis: Identify areas not covered by existing fire suppression systems and verify that critical infrastructure is adequately protected. Check for gaps in system deployment across different departments or locations.
Maintenance Status Verification: Review maintenance logs to ensure timely and regular inspections, confirm that all components are functioning correctly and up-to-date, and detect overdue maintenance schedules or reported issues.
Integration with Security Systems: Assess the integration of fire suppression systems with other security measures (e.g., access control, surveillance). Ensure seamless communication between fire suppression systems and central monitoring stations. Verify that fire alarms trigger appropriate security protocols and alerts.
Compliance with Standards: Check adherence to relevant safety standards and regulations (e.g., NFPA, ISO). Validate that system configurations meet industry best practices. Identify non-compliant elements or outdated technologies.
Documentation Review: Examine available documentation for fire suppression systems. Ensure that all necessary manuals, installation guides, and maintenance records are present and up-to-date. Verify that training materials for staff are current and comprehensive.

Inputs Required:

domain (string): Primary domain to analyze (e.g., acme.com)
company_name (string): Company name for statement searching (e.g., “Acme Corporation”)

Business Impact: This scanner is crucial for maintaining a robust security posture by ensuring that fire suppression systems are effectively maintained and integrated with other critical security measures, thereby minimizing the risk of catastrophic failures in safety protocols and enhancing overall organizational resilience against potential disasters.

Risk Levels:

Critical: Conditions where fire suppression systems are either entirely absent or severely inadequate for their intended purpose, posing an immediate threat to life and property.
High: Systems that lack regular maintenance leading to potential malfunctions, which could delay response times during emergencies.
Medium: Inefficient integration with other security systems, potentially resulting in delayed alarm activation or ineffective communication pathways.
Low: Minor non-compliance with standards or outdated documentation, though still requiring attention for continuous improvement and compliance.
Info: Informal training materials or missing maintenance logs that do not directly impact safety but are indicative of a need for better practices and proactive management.

If the README doesn’t specify exact risk levels, infer them based on the scanner’s purpose and impact.

Example Findings:

“The fire suppression system in the warehouse lacks coverage for several critical areas, posing significant risks during a fire event.”
“Routine maintenance logs indicate that no checks have been performed on the sprinkler systems since last year, raising concerns about their operational readiness.”