Atos, a global leader in digital transformation and Siemens, a global engineering leader, announce today they have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and will leverage their portfolios to help customers establish an integrated first line of defense against cyber-attacks. Siemens and Atos work together in the area of cybersecurity for industrial companies, providing customers in the manufacturing and processing industries with comprehensive security services and products.
The Atos and Siemens partnership in the U.S. is part of a global agreement around cybersecurity including common go-to-market and shared research and development efforts to target Information Technology (IT) and Operational Technology (OT) security for any market. Atos, with its unique capabilities in the field of IT, including identity access management, real-time security analytics, next-generation cryptography and software-defined security architecture; and Siemens, with its deep domain know-how and solutions for OT cyber, including security program design, security life cycle management, plant security monitoring and incident response, are well-positioned to help companies with an integrated approach to protecting against, detecting, and correcting threats quickly and efficiently.
As utilities companies increasingly use software to become more efficient and reliable, there is a corresponding need to boost cyber defenses – going beyond compliance regulations to secure operations. In oil and gas, digitalization brings a convergence of IT and OT connectivity that enables data to travel from the field, to the control room to the enterprise network – underscoring the need for a unique set of solutions to address the crossover between IT and OT.
A recent study from the independent Ponemon Institute shows that nearly 70 percent of U.S. oil and gas cyber managers said their operations have had at least one security compromise in the past year, resulting in the loss of confidential information or OT disruption – highlighting the need for the oil and gas industry to increase its cyber defenses.
“We are pleased to have the opportunity to expand the Siemens and Atos relationship as U.S. utilities, oil and gas industries are realizing the extent of cybersecurity challenges when moving into a digitized and connected ecosystem,” said Michel-Alain Proch, Group Senior Executive Vice President and CEO North America, Atos. “With our combined end-to-end suite of solutions and innovative approaches to security analytics and better detection and response capabilities, customers will see tangible advantages in cost and risk reductions, as well as enhanced performance and flexibility gains.”
“As the energy industry benefits from digital technologies and solutions, there is a need to guard against growing cyber threats. This new cooperation is part of our broad effort to deliver cybersecurity solutions to America’s energy sector. By bridging operational technology and information technology capabilities, we can strengthen our customers’ defenses against costly and disruptive attacks,” said Judy Marks, CEO Siemens USA and Executive Vice President of New Equipment Solutions for Dresser-Rand.
The Atos-Siemens alliance, founded in 2011, forms one of the largest strategic relationships ever between a global engineering company and a global IT provider.
