Control Global Blogs

Control System Cyber Incidents and Network Breaches Are “Apples and Oranges”

Joe Weiss argues that network‑focused breach statistics, such as those in the 2025 Verizon Data Breach Report, do not capture the reality of control‑system cyber incidents. While IT and OT network teams track data loss, ransomware and malicious traffic, control‑system teams monitor physical impacts like equipment damage, environmental harm and safety threats. The two data sets are fundamentally incomparable—"apples and oranges"—because the definition of a cyber incident differs across domains. Weiss calls for a shared incident taxonomy and dedicated OT‑cyber training to bridge the gap.