Examining Cybersecurity of Cyberphysical Systems for Critical Infrastructures Through Work Domain Analysis

Area of Science:

• Cybersecurity
• Human Factors Engineering
• Industrial Control Systems

Background:

• Cyberphysical systems (CPSs) in critical infrastructures face increased cybersecurity risks due to ICT adoption.
• Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems are frequent targets of cyberattacks causing physical damage.
• Human adaptive ability is crucial for responding to unforeseen cyberintrusions in complex systems.

Purpose of the Study:

• To apply work domain analysis for cybersecurity assessment and design of SCADA systems.
• To investigate the interactions between SCADA systems, industrial processes, and malware during cyberattacks.

Main Methods:

• Utilized work domain analysis with abstraction hierarchy (AH) to model SCADA systems.
• Conducted a case study of the Stuxnet cyberattack, integrating AHs for the process, SCADA, and malware.
• Analyzed functional structures and means-ends relations within the SCADA environment.

Main Results:

• Abstraction hierarchies effectively map cyberattack vectors in SCADA systems.
• Identified deficiencies in security processes and features through AH modeling.
• Evaluated proposed security solutions against system objectives using AHs.

Conclusions:

• Work domain analysis is a valuable method for studying CPS cybersecurity.
• This approach provides psychologically relevant insights for security assessment.
• Work domain analysis should inform engineering and user interface design for enhanced security.