Security News > 2023 > February > How hackers can cause physical damage to bridges

In this Help Net Security video, Daniel Dos Santos, Head of Security Research at Forescout, talks about recent research, which has revealed how attackers can move laterally between vulnerable networks and devices found at the controller level of critical infrastructure.

This lateral movement lets attackers access industrial control systems and cross often-overlooked security perimeters to cause physical damage.

Moving through these devices at the lowest levels, attackers can circumvent built-in functional and safety limitations to cause significant damage or disruption to services, or worse, pose a potential threat to life.

To demonstrate the potential implications, Forescout has built an industry-first proof-of-concept which shows how attackers can move laterally on the controller level to cause cyber and physical impact, as illustrated through the scenario of damaging a movable bridge during a closing sequence.

Whilst these devices should not be accessible online, Forescout has found that close to a thousand PLCs have been exposed, with France, Spain, Italy, and the United States revealed as the countries with the most exposed devices.

The number of devices visible is just a small indication of the popularity of these PLCs, but these devices also highlight some of the critical facilities that rely on them.

News URL

https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/02/17/how-hackers-can-cause-physical-damage-to-bridges-video/