The upstream imperative: Why OT cybersecurity must safeguard production first

AUSTEN BYERS, TXOne Networks

Production continuity is the backbone of profitability for upstream oil and gas operators. Even brief downtime can have major financial implications, and long disruptions can even threaten national security and public safety. 

Fig. 1. Production continuity is critical for upstream operators, yet integrating legacy assets often introduces dangerous visibility gaps.

Consequently, cybersecurity in the upstream segment of exploration and production is not about protecting data as much as it is about safeguarding operations. Today’s upstream operators need an actionable framework for strengthening OT (Operational Technology) security, in a way that protects uptime and supports core business goals—including bringing together a wide mix of legacy systems and newly acquired assets in an industry defined by rapid mergers and acquisitions, Fig. 1.

In the upstream oil and gas industry, speed is a constant pressure. Upstream operators are often expected to get newly acquired environments online almost immediately. In that rush, security controls are sometimes deployed too quickly, leaving critical system vulnerabilities overlooked. A common assumption is that physical or network isolation is enough to keep a remote rig secure. However, in today’s highly connected OT landscape, those traditional boundaries no longer hold. Even so-called “isolated” systems now rely on remote access, vendor connections and data feeds that quietly open pathways in and out. What appears air-gapped rarely is, and that connectivity expands the attack surface in ways many operators do not immediately see.

Another issue is that when teams fall back on familiar security practices from information technology (IT), they unintentionally create blind spots, delaying detection and response and increasing the risk of an outage. The bigger challenge is that many operators still lack unified visibility across the OT assets they are responsible for protecting. Without that visibility, securing the environment becomes reactive instead of proactive.

You can’t secure what you can’t see. At the same time, visibility without protection is never sufficient. A balanced approach to OT cybersecurity that blends monitoring, network segmentation and in-place protection provides upstream operators with a robust and sustainable defense model.

SAFEGUARDING OPERATIONAL UPTIME

Operational disruptions in oil and gas are extraordinarily expensive and often lead to longer-term consequences that are harder to quantify. What is the operational and reputational cost of having to ask every service level agreement (SLA) customer for permission to interrupt the operation?

Unplanned shutdowns can trigger cascading operational challenges and create serious safety risks for workers and the environment. The business continuity risks are severe enough that some operators might struggle to ever fully recover from a major outage.

Even planned shutdowns pose problems. Many upstream sites depend on older control systems that cannot be replaced easily, patched, or taken offline, because they are fundamental to maintaining uptime. These legacy technologies are challenging to secure without creating disruption, and traditional security tools often require downtime for installation, testing or updates. Protecting these systems already in place or in line is essential.

ACCOMMODATING M&A ACTIVITY

The industry’s ongoing cycle of mergers and acquisitions adds another layer of complexity. Integrating newly acquired OT environments introduces significant challenges:

• Visibility gaps are common. Inherited legacy systems may lack basic cybersecurity controls, and vulnerabilities are often unknown. Entire network segments or assets can be undocumented.
• Network audits and adjustments may require operational downtime.
• Transitional phases expose misconfigurations and incompatible security policies. This undermines safety and reliability.

Bringing together new, old and transitional assets from acquired companies often leads to confusion and inefficiencies—leaving plant managers, cybersecurity leaders and operational executives unsure where to begin. 

Fig. 2. Modern OT security requires deep visibility and active protection that isolates threats without disrupting critical operations.

TAKING STEPS TOWARD ACTUAL PROTECTION

The most mature upstream operators focus on solutions that deliver both deep visibility and active protection across remote operations—without disrupting uptime, Fig. 2. A practical blueprint for securing the upstream environment is achievable when strategies are non-disruptive and prioritize operational continuity and human safety above all:

• Start with comprehensive visibility, but remember that protection is the goal. Map every device. Define network paths and topology. Identify all remote connections and who is using them.
• Segment the environment using OT-specific IPS technologies to limit how far a threat can move laterally or vertically.
• Inspect traffic as low in the network as possible. Isolate “Patient Zero” early and apply protective controls to contain the threat.

Effective OT security requires an understanding that uptime is non-negotiable. Protection must not rely on shutting down equipment or redesigning networks, simply to achieve segmentation or visibility.

Integrating and securing a large, distributed landscape of new, old and transitional assets is a significant challenge, with risks that extend to corporate stability, national security and public safety. A security approach built specifically for OT—one that respects the realities of the environment and its unwavering requirement for continuous production—is essential for upstream operators to succeed.

AUSTIN BYERS serves as technical director, Americas, at TXOne Networks, where he leads the company’s efforts in providing design, architecture and engineering technical direction and leadership. Austen is a sought-after thought leader in operational technology (OT) cybersecurity, with more than 15 years in the industrial and cybersecurity space. He has spoken at numerous industry events as a subject-matter expert to provide insight into the state of industrial cybersecurity, the intricacies of OT breaches and providing strategies to help organizations keep their assets and environments safe.