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Railway cyber-security in the era of interconnected systems: a survey

Simone Soderi, Daniele Masti, Yuriy Zacchia Lun

TL;DR

This survey examines the cybersecurity aspects of railway systems by considering the standards, guidelines, frameworks, and technologies used in the industry to assess and mitigate cybersecurity risks, particularly regarding the relationship between safety and security.

Abstract

Technological advances in the telecommunications industry have brought significant advantages in the management and performance of communication networks. The railway industry is among the ones that have benefited the most. These interconnected systems, however, have a wide area exposed to cyberattacks. This survey examines the cybersecurity aspects of railway systems by considering the standards, guidelines, frameworks, and technologies used in the industry to assess and mitigate cybersecurity risks, particularly regarding the relationship between safety and security. To do so, we dedicate specific attention to signaling, which fundamental reliance on computer and communication technologies allows us to explore better the multifaceted nature of the security of modern hyperconnected railway systems. With this in mind, we then move on to analyzing the approaches and tools that practitioners can use to facilitate the cyber security process. In detail, we present a view on cyber ranges as an enabling technology to model and emulate computer networks and attack-defense scenarios, study vulnerabilities' impact, and finally devise countermeasures. We also discuss several possible use cases strongly connected to the railway industry reality.

Railway cyber-security in the era of interconnected systems: a survey

TL;DR

This survey examines the cybersecurity aspects of railway systems by considering the standards, guidelines, frameworks, and technologies used in the industry to assess and mitigate cybersecurity risks, particularly regarding the relationship between safety and security.

Abstract

Technological advances in the telecommunications industry have brought significant advantages in the management and performance of communication networks. The railway industry is among the ones that have benefited the most. These interconnected systems, however, have a wide area exposed to cyberattacks. This survey examines the cybersecurity aspects of railway systems by considering the standards, guidelines, frameworks, and technologies used in the industry to assess and mitigate cybersecurity risks, particularly regarding the relationship between safety and security. To do so, we dedicate specific attention to signaling, which fundamental reliance on computer and communication technologies allows us to explore better the multifaceted nature of the security of modern hyperconnected railway systems. With this in mind, we then move on to analyzing the approaches and tools that practitioners can use to facilitate the cyber security process. In detail, we present a view on cyber ranges as an enabling technology to model and emulate computer networks and attack-defense scenarios, study vulnerabilities' impact, and finally devise countermeasures. We also discuss several possible use cases strongly connected to the railway industry reality.
Paper Structure (21 sections, 7 figures, 3 tables)

This paper contains 21 sections, 7 figures, 3 tables.

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Railways as an integrated system
  3. The dualism between safety and security
  4. Security landscape in the railway industry
  5. A deeper look on signaling systems
  6. Security aspects of ERTMS
  7. The limits of an atomistic approach
  8. Security assessment methodologies for railway systems
  9. Standards for cybersecurity assessments
  10. Guidelines to enhance the security of railway systems
  11. The issue of safety certification
  12. An enterprise-oriented approach to security risk management
  13. An applicative procedure for cybersecurity assessments
  14. Cyber ranges as assessment tools
  15. The landscape of cyber ranges
  16. ...and 6 more sections

Figures (7)

  • Figure 1: The different meanings of the Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability triad in ICT and IC systems.
  • Figure 2: Wayside network scenario. The central control room connects the safe HMI with support system diagnostic and interlocking in LAN and controller areas via WAN. Each LAN comprises networking devices such as gateways, routers, and switches. The control areas link trackside devices to their safety input/output manager and diagnostic system.
  • Figure 3: A schematic representation of the many communication channel used by railways systems. Dashed boxes list possible technological solutions. Each one of those links can be be potentially used to to carry out attacks to the connected subsystems.
  • Figure 4: Example of a possible design architecture integrating both Safety and Security facets. In this approach, the security facets functions as external shell protecting safety function.
  • Figure 5: Graphical depiction of the general cybersecurity assessment process detailed in Section \ref{['sec:novelMethodology']}. The core stage is highlighted in gray.
  • ...and 2 more figures