Maritime Cybersecurity - Building Capacity in Critical Infrastructure Protection

美国国土安全部认为，海上运输系统（MTS）是美国16个最关键的基础设施部门之一，其资产、系统和网络如果受到破坏或丧失能力，将对国家经济和公民的安全和保障产生严重影响。在过去的五年中，越来越多的海上网络安全事件凸显了MTS对网络威胁的脆弱性，包括船舶导航、货物扫描和港口设施运营。这些事件的不断演变的复杂性，以及构成海洋环境的许多组成部分，要求海事专业人员必须在新兴科学和技术方面做好充分准备，以便为海事和关键基础设施安全政策和指令提供信息、支持和实施。为了有效加强我国海上边界、港口和内河航道的安全，海事专业人员必须具备应对网络威胁所需的技能，必须善于开发和评估高效响应和系统弹性的新方法和工具，并且必须能够制定缓解网络威胁的新战略。为了应对这一挑战，史蒂文斯与来自罗格斯大学和德克萨斯南方大学（历史上的黑人学院和大学之一）的合作者一起，将开发海上网络安全的两个跨学科项目，以弥合海上系统和网络安全两个学科之间的当前知识差距。因此，该项目将为海事系统和网络安全专业人员建立一个共同的基础，以便有效地合作应对MTS的独特网络安全挑战。通过研讨会，新开发的材料将传播给其他学术机构和整个社区。作为该项目的一部分，专门的研讨会、学生实习和以海事网络安全为重点的研究项目将作为提高整个海事企业网络意识的额外机制。

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security considers the Maritime Transportation System (MTS) to be among the 16 most critical infrastructure sectors in the U.S. whose assets, systems, and networks if disrupted or rendered incapacitated would have crippling effects on the nation's economy and the safety and security of its citizens. Over the past five years, an increasing number of reported maritime cybersecurity incidents have highlighted the vulnerabilities of the MTS to cyber threats, including vessel navigation, cargo scanning and port facility operations. The evolving complexity of these occurrences, together with the many components that comprise the maritime environment require that maritime professionals must be well prepared in the emerging science and technologies needed to inform, support, and implement maritime and critical infrastructure security policies and directives. To effectively enhance the security of our nation's maritime borders, ports and inland waterways, maritime professionals must possess the skills needed to address cyber threats, must be well adept at developing and evaluating new methods and tools for efficient and effective response and system resilience, and must be able to define new strategies for mitigating cyber threats.In order to address this challenge, Stevens---together with its collaborators from Rutgers University and Texas Southern University (one of Historically Black Colleges and Universities)---will develop two interdisciplinary programs in Maritime Cybersecurity in order to bridge the current knowledge gap between the two disciplines Maritime Systems and Cybersecurity. As such, this project will build a common basis for Maritime Systems and Cybersecurity professionals to work together effectively in addressing the unique cybersecurity challenges of the MTS. Through workshops, the newly developed materials will be disseminated to other academic institutions and the community at large. Dedicated seminars, student internships, and maritime cybersecurity-focused research projects will serve as additional mechanisms to enhance cyber awareness across the maritime enterprise as part of this project.