Symantec and Emerson Team up to Provide Cyber Security Solutions for Electric Utilities

Symantec and Emerson Team up to Provide Cyber Security Solutions for Electric Utilities

Symantec Corp. (NASDAQ: SYMC) and Emerson Process Management, a business of Emerson (NYSE: EMR), today announced the creation of a strategic alliance supporting the electric power industry’s requirements for network security, reliability, and compliance with the North American Electric Reliability Council’s (NERC) critical infrastructure protection (CIP) standards. As part of the agreement, Emerson will provide power generators with Symantec security technologies that have been validated specifically to operate on its Ovation® expert control system. Emerson’s industry-leading Ovation system is a distributed control system (DCS) used to automate and manage the generation of electricity. Leading utilities around the world, including the top 10 U.S. power companies, rely on Ovation to operate their plants securely and reliably.

The customized Symantec offerings, which complement Emerson’s existing cyber-security measures, give electric IT and operations managers confidence to deploy Emerson and Symantec solutions in tandem, driving efficiency, reliability and safety. Emerson worked closely with Symantec product managers and architects to provide cyber-security tools that have been fully validated for the Ovation control system. This allows electric power companies to bypass the complexities of separately purchasing, testing, implementing, and managing DCS and security software critical to plant operations.

“This initiative is part of our ongoing and comprehensive commitment to providing the power industry with cyber-security solutions that help them comply with industry regulations and standards, such as the imminent NERC CIP standards,” said Bob Yeager, president of the Power & Water Solutions division of Emerson. “Our agreement with Symantec, the recognized leader in information security, further establishes Emerson as the automation supplier of choice for the power generation industry.”

“For electric utilities, risk management means working to prevent any disruption to generating and delivering power, whether from attack, accident or operator error,” said Gary Sevounts, Symantec’s senior director of industry solutions. “Helping the power community address the enterprise-wide implications of standards such as NERC CIP requires good relationships with top providers in the sector. Emerson understands utilities’ operational imperatives and helps align security measures accordingly.”

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