COUNTERING CYBER THREATS IN OFFSHORE OPERATIONS OF SMART FIELDS

ABSTRACT:

The significance of offshore petroleum in providing the world's energy demands cannot be over overstated. The growing global energy resources demand, along with considerable technological developments, has resulted in a dramatic transfer of petroleum operations from onshore to offshore locations. States and oil companies are looking to the sea for offshore petroleum

resources more than ever before. The offshore industry accounts for roughly 30% of overall petroleum output. This figure is likely to rise dramatically due to declining onshore fields and rapidly rising offshore petroleum exploration and development. The digitization of operational procedures in the oil and gas industry has created new potential to increase productivity and reduce costs.

This, however, has also exposed the organization to a slew of new cyber threats. For many years, the upstream sector, particularly offshore oil installations, has been an attractive target for terrorists. Attacks on crude oil and natural gas (O&G) firms have increased in frequency, sophistication, and impact as the industry adopts more linked technologies. As hackers' motivations evolve - from

cyberterrorism to industrial espionage to interrupting operations to stealing field data - and firms increasingly relying daily operations on linked technology, dangers and stakes are rising rapidly. As a result, the sector must be protected from ongoing threats. This study therefore aims at looking at ways to Countering Cyber Threats in Offshore Operations of Digital Oil Fields.

Keywords: Energy Resources Demand, Appealing Targets for Terrorism, Digital oil Fields, Digitization, Cyber Threats

Mitigation