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Cyberattacks have now started targeting energy infrastructure
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The global loss due to cybercrimes in 2020 was assessed at $1 trillion: more than 1% of the global GDP
State-owned public petroleum and natural gas company Saudi Aramco has hired global auditing, consulting, taxation, and advisory services-provider Deloitte to assess its suppliers’ compliance to its cybersecurity norms, said local reports on Wednesday, June 23.
A December 2020 report by cybersecurity firm McAfee said the global loss due to cybercrimes that year stood at $1 trillion, which was more than 1% of the global GDP.
As for Saudi Arabia, cybersecurity firm Symantec — creator of the Norton antivirus suite — had in as early as 2012 estimated that the country was losing $690 million to cybercrimes.
Cyberattacks have now started hitting even energy infrastructure, as was witnessed early last month in the United States when a ransomware attack halted 45% of all the oil supply to the country’s East Coast.
Aramco, the biggest oil company in the world, has now authorized Deloitte to assess its suppliers and issue Cybersecurity Compliance Certificates if they adhere to the SACS-002 Third Party Cybersecurity Standard.
Aramco introduced the Cybersecurity Compliance Certificate Program for suppliers in April 2020 to ensure all third parties working with it comply with the cybersecurity requirements in the SACS-002.
As part of the requirements, all third parties engaging with Aramco must obtain a CCC from an authorized firm to confirm their adherence to the cybersecurity standards.
The local reports quoted Salam Awawdeh, global lead partner for Aramco at Deloitte, as saying: “The cybersecurity market has become fragmented and complex, and both enterprises and vendors require third-party validation.”
He added: “Cybersecurity is now more important and critical than ever to the success of corporations, and being selected as a certifying body for Aramco is a testament of Deloitte’s expertise in the area.”