Last week I had the privilege of attending the Construction Financial Management Association Dallas/Ft Worth Chapter’s monthly membership education luncheon as a prospective member. The educational topic was Cybersecurity and the Construction Industry and presented in a panel format. The panelists were Jon Schildt, Vice President of Technology & Cyber Practice for Hub International Midwest Limited’s Professional and Executive Risk (ProEx) Group and Jim Harryman, CEO of Kinetic Technology Group, a leading IT and cybersecurity firm based in Dallas, Texas. Daniel Rutter of HUB International served as the moderator.
Relying upon their years of experience with cybersecurity issues, Jon Schildt and Jim Harryman provided valuable insight regarding advice on best cybersecurity protection practices, insurance products, attack trends, and training. No company or industry is immune from potentially devastating cyber attacks that result in financial and institutional damage. Specifically, it was noted that ransomware and phishing remain amongst the most common methods of attack. Best practices according to the panelists include regular employee cybersecurity training, multifactor authentication, and insurance coverage.
Cybersecurity is invasive and costly on many fronts. When cyber criminals successfully attack your company sensitive data, financial resources, and operational logistics are all at risk. Most interesting to me are issues related to the “internet of things” as it relates to the construction industry. More specifically, there are so many modern building components and pieces of equipment, such as HVAC units, generators, thermostats, etc. that require internet connectivity to properly function. Constant internet connectivity makes them vulnerable to hackers. These are often overlooked weak spots that serve as entry points for an attack. Once attacked the fallout can be devastating from a financial and operational standpoint, not to mention potentially placing the attacked company in violation of the new data privacy acts such as that in Texas.
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