SCIPS: Using Experiential Learning to Raise Cyber Situational Awareness in Industrial Control System

The cyber threat to industrial control systems is an acknowledged security issue, but a qualified dataset to quantify the risk remains largely unavailable. Senior executives of facilities that operate these systems face competing requirements for investment budgets, but without an understanding of the nature of the threat, cyber security may not be a high priority. Education and awareness campaigns are established methods of raising the profile of security issues with stakeholders, but traditional techniques typically deliver generic messages to wide audiences, rather than tailoring the communications to those who understand the impact of organisational risks. This paper explores the use of experiential learning through serious games for senior executives, to develop mental models within which participants can frame the nature of the threat, thereby raising their cyber security awareness, and increasing their motivation to address the issue.