How to Spot Cyber Attacks on Physical Assets

Industrial operations have spent decades optimizing for safety , reliability, and uptime . Control systems, sensors, and field equipment were designed to be stable and predictable, often isolated from the outside world. Cybersecurity , by contrast, evolved largely in IT environments , on a separate track, with different tools, assumptions, and incentives. That separation is no longer holding. Operational technology is becoming more connected , more digital , and more automated . Sensors stream data to the cloud, vendors require remote access, and AI-driven tools increasingly influence operational decisions. At the same time, cyber threats are moving faster, targeting physical systems with the potential for real-world safety and production impacts. One response is data meshing : combining traditional cyber telemetry with operational data such as vibration, maintenance history, and asset performance to create a richer , more reliable picture of what is really happening inside industrial environments. When these signals are viewed together, anomalies surface faster , false positives drop, and attacks become harder to hide. In this episode, I'm speaking with Ian Bramson , VP of Global Industrial Cybersecurity at Black & Veatch , and Keon McEwen , Head of Solutions Development for Industrial Cybersecurity. We discuss why the old idea of the air gap is fading, how safety and cybersecurity are converging , what data meshing really means in practice, and why points of operational change are the right moment to rethink cyber risk. 👥 About the Guests Ian Bramson is Vice President of Global Industrial Cybersecurity at Black & Veatch . He has spent more than two decades working at the intersection of digital transformation, cybersecurity, and critical infrastructure, with prior roles spanning consulting, energy, and operational technology environments. Ian focuses on helping industrial organizations manage cyber risk as systems become more connected and automated. Keon McEwen is Head of Solutions Development for Industrial Cybersecurity at Black & Veatch . With a background in programming PLCs and operational systems, Keon bridges OT and cyber disciplines, designing practical security solutions that account for how industrial assets actually operate in the field. 🌐 Black and Veatch 🛠️ Additional Tools & Resources 🎬Go backstage and check out my studio 🎓 Take my one-day digital strategy course for oil and gas 🔗 Connect with Me 📘 Blog: 🎧 Podcast: 💼 LinkedIn: 🐦 X: 🎤 Contact for Lectures and Keynotes I speak regularly on digital innovation, cybersecurity, and energy systems. Book a brief call about your upcoming event here: 👉 ⚠️ Disclaimer The views expressed in this podcast are my own and do not constitute professional advice.

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How to Spot Cyber Attacks on Physical Assets is an episode from Digital Oil and Gas by Geoffrey Cann.

This episode is 32:28 long.

This episode was published on Mar 4, 2026.

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