HMI maintenance program protects against cybersecurity threats to power plants

TO ADDRESS the increasing risk of cyber security threats to power plants and other industrial facilities, GE Energy has launched an HMI (Human-Machine Interface) Maintenance Program designed to keep critical control system components safe from viruses and security breaches. The announcement was made at the 15th Annual Joint ISA POWID/EPRI Controls and Instrumentation Conference, held recently in Nashville, Tenn.Going into effect later this year and in 2006, the North American Electric Reliability Council (NERC) and the European Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA) have outlined stringent guidelines that require power plants to adopt virus and security precautions. The HMI Maintenance Program delivers virus shield software and targeted security updates designed to keep the HMI and historian components of control systems functioning properly and in full compliance with NERC 1300 and ENISA 460 cyber security regulations. The Program also provides updates to the GE-proprietary portions of the system, keeping it up-to-date with current GE Energy standards. “Power plants, refineries, and industrial facilities represent critical parts of the world’s infrastructure,” said Ricardo Artigas, president of energy services for GE Energy. “We are committed to keeping this infrastructure safe and secure, and our HMI Maintenance Program is designed to offer customers the most advanced security technology available today while evolving to meet the cyber security needs of the future."