Simulating nuclear critical infrastructure for live cyber defence training: The Defence Cyber Marvel Nuclear Power Plant

Contributors: Dr Richard Piggin, Captain Josef Yalvac

Published in Nuclear Future 22.5

DOI: https://doi.org/10.63198/nuclearfuture2251224

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SUMMARY

  • Exercise DEFENCE CYBER MARVEL (DCM) is an annual competition, this year with the hub located in Singapore. Thirty-six teams, 29 countries and 2,500 personnel from Defence, Government agencies, industry partners, UK critical infrastructure operators and other nations, competed in a challenging real-world scenario defending a variety of systems. The range includes specialist systems, with technology used to operate critical infrastructure, which face increasing cyber risk. Specialist skills and realistic training opportunities for protecting CNI technology are limited. DCM developed a high-fidelity physical demonstrator to enhance hands-on training and increase awareness.
  • The system uses industrial control systems technology, often referred to as Operational Technology (OT), commonly used for safety-related automation. It embodies components widely used in safety systems architectures. Similar safety-related control systems are used across Critical National Infrastructure, including transport, critical manufacturing, utilities, energy, and hazardous industrial processes.
  • The paper discusses one approach the British Army Cyber Association takes to maximise future training opportunities. This includes specialist security functionality to provide control system protocol awareness, asset discovery, vulnerability prioritisation, anomaly detection, device behavioural analytics and threat hunting capability.

LEAD AUTHOR

Dr RICHARD PIGGIN ENGD CENG MIET CHCSP MCIIS MBCS Richard is a Nuclear Security Inspector with ONR. He is also a recent Pinkerton Prize winner for best technical paper in the Nuclear Future Journal. He is a Chartered Engineer and recently became a Chartered Cyber Security Professional. Richard has an Engineering Doctorate from the University of Warwick (industrial networking), and a Cyberspace Operations PgDip from Cranfield University. He was a co-instigator/contributor to the IET Code of Practice: Cyber Security and Safety. www.researchgate.net/profile/Richard-Piggin/publications

CAPTAIN JOSEF YALVAC BSC(HONS) CMGR CMI IMI IENG RSIGNALS Captain Yalvac joined the Army 10 years ago, originally as a Communications Systems Engineer. Following commissioning and desiring to reawaken his practical technical skills he joined the Army Cyber Association and attended his first Defence Cyber Marvel, appointed as the Special Systems Lead. His educational background is in Systems Engineering and Management. He recently gained his Chartership in management from CMI.