Opening address
Mr Marios Demetriades
Minister of Transport, Communications & Works,
Republic of Cyprus
Ladies and gentlemen,
It is with great pleasure to be here, in the second CYpBER Maritime - Oil & Gas conference.
The maritime as well as the oil and gas industries are of major importance to Cyprus. A secure
development of their information infrastructures is critical, so that stakeholders and investors can gain
the necessary confidence in developing their operations. Both sectors are facing the challenge to safely
embrace modern information and communication technologies in their systems. The Cyprus
government aims to work with and support all stakeholders including the maritime and energy sectors
in achieving their goals and enhance security levels in the provisioning of their services.
Cyber security refers to the technologies and processes designed to protect computers, networks and
data from unauthorized access, vulnerabilities and attacks delivered directly or indirectly via the
Internet by cyber criminals. This has led into a new area of potential maritime threats that go well
beyond physical piracy.
Energy is essential to a nation’s security, economic stability, and global trade, yet is particularly
vulnerable to attacks and disruption in the maritime environment. In short, there are as many potential
avenues for cyber damage in the maritime sector as there are cyber systems. While only some cyberattack scenarios in the maritime sector could credibly lead to a Transportation Security Incident, it is
important to identify and prioritize those risks, take this threat seriously, and work together to improve
defences.
Cyber security is not only the largest, but one of the critical safety challenges that an oil and gas
company can face. With the exploitation of new cost-effective operational concepts, use of digital
technologies and increased dependence on cyber structures, the oil and gas industry is exposed to new
sets of vulnerabilities and threats. Recent research in the field has revealed that energy companies are
actively managing their information security, but just over half (58%) have adopted an ad hoc
management strategy, with only 27% setting concrete goals. Security is only as strong as the weakest
link. Many times the infrastructure alone is not the weakest element. Employees and executives who
are not adequately trained in security threats appear to be a major security risk.
The far-flung geographic locations of energy producers also present a huge challenge, which means that
connected technology assets are necessary to assure a wide range of essential servic Some of the most
important challenges and vulnerabilities that companies are facing include, the lack of cyber security
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