The cost of securing rolling stock isn’t that simple. No two trains are the same.

One of the most common questions that we get asked is “how much does your solution cost?”. Unfortunately the answer is never simple.  We can deliver a software only solution integrated into existing equipment, we can supply hardware including firewalls and monitoring software, we can add network devices and switches from our trusted partners and we can help you manage security for the life of the train. But what is the right solution for your train fleet? Let’s take a step back.

Most operators have mixed fleets from different manufacturers, built over the last 30 years with network equipment that may have been retrofitted, repaired and maintained. Even within a new fleet, the design often changes subtly during the build process with suppliers having to make minor adjustments as the build proceeds. 

This means that documentation and understanding of rolling stock networks is often incomplete, incorrect or misleading.  As an operator, you are trying to balance your own tolerance of risk and the target level of compliance without a complete picture of the assets you are trying to protect and the risks associated with them. 

These unique challenges mean that taking something off-the-shelf from an enterprise environment does not work without heavy customisation and commitment to maintain it for the life of the train.

Getting the right security for your fleet leads to the most competitive solution

The first step in this discussion is to work together to understand the knowns and unknowns when it comes to securing the fleet. Having a network diagram is a great starting point, if this can be coupled with network traffic flows and a risk register then we can work together to develop a design to mitigate those risks.

Often we need to do some ground work to gather the information needed to work together on a design. This may mean a survey of the onboard network equipment, or data captures to build a picture about the onboard traffic flows. 

These activities are inexpensive and ensure that any design has maximum visibility and effectiveness for the class of train being protected. We sometimes recommend them, even in cases where an operator/train builder has good security capabilities, because it may not be immediately clear where the best visibility can be achieved. In every case we have learned something new that has helped build better understanding and a more effective design.

In cases where an operator or train builder has a strong design concept, through a review process can we often suggest cost efficiencies or improvements. Small incremental improvements often lead to big reductions in installation cost if we can avoid modifying cabling for example.

Collaboration design leads to better cyber security

Our focus at RazorSecure is to provide the best cybersecurity solutions for the railway, we have developed our own approach to working with customers to ensure they get the best security solution. Security is always about teamwork, and this approach is built around collaboration.

We offer a range of solutions to give us the flexibility to meet any design challenge in rail cybersecurity. This includes software-only integrations into existing hardware, taking advantage of existing capabilities that are onboard the trains already and adding new hardware if appropriate.

This approach ensures that we have a holistic view of the cost of design, implementation and management of the cybersecurity solution. We take into account not only the cost of the solution itself but also the cost of the changes required to implement the solution, minimising those where possible.