Process Control Systems Forum announces keynote speakers for spring meeting

• CISO of BP p.l.c., former NSA deputy director and National Infrastructure Advisory Council member to discuss unique challenges for securing control systems of critical infrastructure.

LA JOLLA, CA, March 29, 2006 -- Today the Process Control Systems Forum (PCSF), which is funded by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, announced keynote speakers for its 2006 Spring Meeting, which will be held June 6-7 in La Jolla, Ca. This meeting will bring together representatives from government, industry, academia and vendors to develop best practices and actionable results for securing control systems. The keynotes for the event are renowned control systems security experts and include Dr. Paul Dorey, CISO of BP p.l.c.; William Crowell, IT consultant and former deputy director for the NSA; and Margaret "Peg" Grayson, member of the National Infrastructure Advisory Council (NIAC) which provides recommendations directly to the President on critical infrastructure security and other issues.

Control systems run some of the most critical infrastructures in the U.S. and abroad, including power utilities, water treatment plants, chemical plants and mass-transit systems. Since 9/11, more attention clearly needs to be given to securing such systems from a physical and cyber security perspective. The perception that control systems cannot be breached has led to a false sense of security and this is an issue which cannot be ignored as new vulnerabilities and network attacks are reported on a more frequent basis.

While the security of control systems has garnered much attention among public-private industries through conferences, meetings and news reports, there has been insufficient measurable action to address this issue to date.

This June 6-7, the Process Control Systems Forum (PCSF) will host its 2nd annual Spring Meeting in La Jolla, Calif. to call together multiple sectors of the community -- government, industry, academia, and vendors -- to develop common architectures, protocols and best practices for locking down cyber security for control systems. The meeting includes keynotes from renowned control systems security experts including Dr. Paul Dorey, CISO of BP, p.l.c.; William Crowell, IT consultant and former Deputy Director for the NSA; and Margaret "Peg" Grayson, member of the National Infrastructure Advisory Council (NIAC) which provides recommendations directly to the President on critical infrastructure security and other issues.

PCSF's 2006 Spring Meeting promises to provide an open, collaborative environment for creating actionable results that will address head-on the growing vulnerabilities of critical control systems.

For more information, see: https://www.pcsforum.org/events/2006/spring.

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