Cyber Mission Assurance Team builds strong relationship with public utilities district

Photo By Joseph Siemandel | Senior Master Sgt. Brian Boosz, Cyber Warfare Operator with the Washington National Guard Cyber Mission Assurance Team talks about their assessment of the Snohomish County Public Utilities District network at the Information Operations Readiness Center, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash. on August 25, 2021. The Washington National Guard’s Cyber Mission Assurance Team continued its long-standing partnership with cyber experts from the Snohomish County Public Utility District to conduct cyber-security defense assessments. (U.S. National Guard photo by Joseph Siemandel)  

CAMP MURRAY, WA, UNITED STATES

08.31.2021

Story by Joseph Siemandel  

Joint Force Headquarters - Washington National Guard

The Washington National Guard’s Cyber Mission Assurance Team continued its long-standing partnership with cyber experts from the Snohomish County Public Utility District to conduct cyber-security defense assessments.

“Doctorial we have cyber protection teams and they focus on doing assessment and securing Department of Defense networks. But we identified a gap that DoD doesn’t just need to defend the networks, we have to have a good idea of the risk level of our partner organizations,” said Chief Warrant Officer 3 Brian Gosch, Washington National Guard CMAT team chief. “To do this we partnered with the local power and utility companies that help power the bases here in Washington.”

The Washington National Guard first developed its relationship with the Snohomish County Public Utility District (SNOPUD) back in 2015. SNOPUD provides power for more than 355,000 customers, to include Naval Station Everett. The first engagement included a utility grid assessment which identified some vulnerabilities and helped develop strategies to ensure a more secure network.

Maj. Russ McRee, a member of the Washington State Guard, was part of the initial assessment with SnoPUD before the Washington CMAT team was stood up. Working evenings for two weeks, the two-man team conducted a vulnerability assessment, making recommendations back to the team with SnoPUD on how to better secure their network.

“Critical infrastructure is hugely important. Who wants to see the power be taken down by an adversary?” said McRee. “To me this is one of the more important things we do.”

The CMAT team would engage with SnoPUD for the next six years, building off that initial assessment and recommendation. Each time the teams met they were able to strengthen the system and correct any vulnerabilities that were identified.

Kevin Johnston, the cyber security architect for SnoPUD has seen the benefits of the relationship from both sides.

“It is a great for the Guard because they are getting realistic information technology and operational technology by which to practice their trade in a real-world environment,” said Johnston. “From our perspective it is a wonderful opportunity to share best practices. In previous engagements we have been able to put the offensive capability of the Guardsmen against our defensive capability and discuss what we are seeing.”

While the training is valuable for both organizations, the true benefit according to both the Guard cyber team and SnoPUD is the relationship that has been built.

“The ability to work with the Washington National Guard and State Guard professionals is something that we can hopefully harvest for the long term,” said Johnston. “If we do have a cyber-security type incident or any incident that threatens our ability to provide electricity in Snohomish County, we have the ability to pick up the phone and ask for assistance. This is where the relationship building is critical.”

• Date Taken: 08.31.2021
• Date Posted: 08.31.2021 17:39
• Story ID: 404268
• Location: CAMP MURRAY, WA, US