Aluminium industry gathers to learn about cyber resilience strategies and how to protect operations and people

The first Cyber Security in Aluminium Workshop was held at Coombe Abbey in Coventry, UK on 26th – 27th February.

Hosted by Quartz Business Media and Coventry University, the event was designed to provide an understanding of the unstructured and diverse nature of cyber attacks, their potential impact in terms of costs and damage, to the organisation and industry, and the need for new approaches to manage the digital risks.

More than 30 participants from across the global aluminium sector, Coventry University and Solutions Providers joined to hear from business, legal and academic experts on the subject of building resilience and implementing incident response plans.

Participants were also invited to take part in a crisis management simulation, in which they had to respond to an escalating cyber security breach. The crisis simulation emphasised that cyber security should be a top concern for any staff member in any organisation, as the implications of a breach can potentially be far reaching and impact an organisation’s reputation, profitability and employee health and safety.

Danieli’s IT Director, Paola Angelilli presented the company’s ‘Roadmap’ towards cyber security and a structured programme that also sees them working closely with their customers on new and existing projects.

When asked about the importance of such an event, Paola said: “It was a pleasure for me to participate in the Cyber Security in Aluminium Workshop and to have to opportunity to present Danieli’s experience. The workshop allowed us to share the experiences of different players, with different roles and experiences, with the common goal of increasing the security of our plants.”

Christophe Attanasio, Chief Information Officer at REEL International was also in attendance and said: “I am convinced that user awareness is one of the main areas where we can reduce the risk. The attack simulation was a great opportunity and the conclusion for me was that the more prepared we are, the better.”

The next Cyber Security Workshop will follow on from this and take place during the Future Aluminium Forum in Québec City on 27th May 2020. The session will look at the dynamic nature of the cyber security landscape in the aluminium sector and participants will collaborate to describe some of the key challenges and drivers of cyber resilience.