Hartford Business Journal

8 Hartford Business Journal • March 27, 2017 www.HartfordBusiness.com Fortunately, the disruption to Empire's computer net- work was minimal, due to separately stored backup files, he said. Empire's episode is one that a growing number of individuals and companies, as well as local, state and national governments worldwide are encountering almost daily, cybersecurity experts say. "Ransomware'' describes pernicious software code that hackers, using corrupted emails and online links, leverage to penetrate victims' computer networks, to rename, erase or relocate crucial data files. Once infected, victims usually are strong-armed into paying "ransom'' to get hackers to "unlock'' or restore hijacked files, said Matt Kozloski, vice president at Kelser Corp., an East Hartford data-security services provider, who helped Empire get back up to speed following the failed cyberattack. Concerned about potential cybersecurity threats to the state's IT network and its public infrastructure, Connecticut last October became one of the first states to create an executive-level post, chief cybersecurity risk officer. Gov. Dannel P. Malloy named Arthur House, former chair of the state's utility oversight agency and an ex-military intelligence officer, to the post. Under House, the state Public Utility Regulatory Authority (PURA) last May unveiled a strategic plan that required all electric, water and telecommuni- cations providers to put in place cybersecurity pre- vention and action plans. After reviewing it, House said Malloy decided many of its provisions should be applied to hardening the state's IT and infrastruc- ture network. Eversource, which pro- vides electricity and natu- ral gas to thousands of central Connecticut resi- dential and commercial customers, said through spokesman Mitch Gross, that it has "a robust, comprehensive security program in place to protect against potential threats.'' "Recognizing that technology is ever-evolving, we continue to work with the governor, state officials and security experts on this issue,'' Gross said. "This collabo- ration is vital to the protection of our electrical system." Clinton's Connecticut Water Co. says it invested last year more than $60 million in water treatment, aging pipeline replacement, cybersecurity and other improvement proj- ects. In 2017, it will spend $46.7 million to continue enhanc- ing system reliability, including protecting sensitive data. "The extent of vulnerability extends to just about every- thing,'' House said. "Our digital economy was made for speed, sharing and managing large volumes of data. It wasn't made for security. Security has to be added by the user.'' To that end, House, who reports to the state's chief information officer, Mark Raymond, said he has three pri- orities: craft and present by May a cybersecurity strategy for Connecticut's state and municipal governments, busi- nesses, higher education and law enforcement; devise an action-plan for implementing those strategies; and set up an emergency response/recovery drill for the state. "We've never had a cyberattack in Connecticut on any of our infrastructure,'' House said. "We need to fig- ure out what that might entail. Nothing is impenetrable." Not an 'IT' problem According to House, there are 2.4 billion online con- nection attempts monthly onto state-government's com- puter network from external sources. Of those, about 53 percent, or 1.26 billion, are blocked by the state's "bound- ary-security'' software; the rest are allowed in, he said. Also, about 4 million emails a month arrive on the state's network, House said, but about one in four don't get through, likely because software screens expose them as nefarious "phishing'' attempts to pilfer user's logins, passwords and other sen- sitive or proprietary data. Moreover, the state's digi- tal screens snare around 2,400 attempts monthly to insert malignant soft- ware, or "malware,'' onto its network. "We rely on state employees to be vigilant,'' the state cybersecurity chief said. "If it looks sus- picious, don't open it." "The question is how good is your security?'' House added. "This is no longer an 'IT problem.' It's a mistake some people make. … Penetration can come to any employee in a company and spread to management. It's like saying only the law- yers in a company have to worry about the law.'' That's the message Shemanskis says is being drilled more intensely into Empire Industries' employees, along with other cyberdeterrents. Since Empire's cyberattack, Shemanskis says he has heard of other local companies' IT networks being breached. However, those firms he didn't identify "ran- somed'' back access to their corrupted data, he said. Small and medium-sized businesses are now the tar- get of 65 percent of cyberattacks. With Kelser's help, Empire Industries installed a Q&A Historical Society explores CT Inc.'s innovative roots Q&A talks with Ilene Frank, chief curator of the Connecticut His- torical Society. The Historical Society developed an exhibit called, "Connecticut Innovates!," which explored innovation through historic and contem- porary Connecticut companies. For the exhibit, which ran through March 25, the Historical Society defined innovation as invention plus impact and looked for changes in materials, processes and ideas that went beyond being just something new. They focused on inventions that helped transform lives and how society views the world. Q: One of the themes of the exhibit was, "Why Connecticut?" What did you find out? Why was Con- necticut an innovative state? A: The people of Connecticut have long been viewed as innovators. Some reasons are based in our state's founding. When the Puritans established colonies here, they brought with them a way of life that included hard work and dedi- cation as ways to get closer to God. Their religious beliefs also required citizens to be literate so they could read the Bible for themselves. This was one factor in the creation of schools and the rich educational environ- ment that still exists in the state. Add that to the early dose of Puritan work ethic and bit of "Yan- kee ingenuity," and now you have a population that prides themselves on being adaptable problem solv- ers. Persistence, access to educa- tion, the natural resources of our state and an ability to diversify and collaborate all led to Connect- icut being innovative. Q: In your research, is Con- necticut still an innovative state? In what areas are we innovating? A: Yes, absolutely. Whether it is almost 100-year-old compa- nies like Pratt and Whitney that continue to adapt their technical expertise to new products, or younger companies like Protein Sciences that are developing new alternatives to traditional flu vac- cines, Connecticut is home to many companies that are offer- ing inventive new materials and ideas that are changing our lives and will continue to do so. Q: One innovation in the exhibit was the invention of the pay phone. Are there other examples of once-innovative technologies that have become almost extinct? A: The hoop skirt is a fashion trend that we haven't seen on the streets of Connecticut towns since the mid-1800s. While the hoop skirt isn't a Connecticut invention, Bristol-based Barnes Group was one of the nation's key manufacturers of the hoops. By understanding the mechanics of twisting and shaping wire, Barnes adapted the process to make small clock springs or large hoop skirts, and diversified their product line. Q: In the midst of preparing the exhibit, what were some of the more unusual elements uncovered? What innovations might have surprised peo- ple that took place in Connecticut? A: I think many of our visitors were surprised to see how Kaman moved from working on pilotless flight to making Ovation guitars. I, personally, loved learning that the vinyl used to produce Bing Crosby's White Christmas record on the Decca label was from the Siemon Company in Watertown. Q: How was attendance for the exhibit? Was there great interest in the innovations of Connecticut? A: The Historical Society had great attendance for the exhibit and saw a 23 percent overall attendance increase in 2016. Our visitors responded well to the exhibit and were most impressed by the range of innovative prod- ucts that the state has developed and continues to develop. Q: How is what you're doing at the museum guiding the next generation of innovators? A: The Historical Society works closely with teachers and school administrators to develop programs that connect today's youth with their history and inspires them to think about how they want their futures to unfold. We've been offering more professional-development workshops for teachers to pro- mote using primary source doc- uments and historic artifacts in their curricula. We feel that including real examples of the people who lived and worked in our state enriches the lessons and the students engage with the content more deeply. n ILENE FRANK Chief curator, Connecticut Historical Society FOCUS MANUFACTURING State, biz seek more safeguards from page 1 BY THE NUMBERS $6 trillion The total annual monetary damages cybercrime is expected to cause by 2021, according to Cybersecurity Ventures. $81.6 billion The amount spent on cybersecurity products and services in 2016, according to Gartner. S O U R C E : C Y B E R S E C U R I T Y V E N T U R E S , G A R T N E R Continued P H O T O | K E L S E R C O R P. Manchester's Empire Industries survived a cyberattack, an escalating threat to commercial and public information- technology networks.

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