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Stronger Security for Italy’s Electrical Industry 

Stronger Security for Italy’s Electrical Industry 

Given that society is constantly migrating to the digital environment, the electricity sector faces unprecedented cyber threats that extend far beyond individual companies. Power grid disruptions can devastate entire communities, affecting hospitals, schools, and essential services while generating substantial financial losses.

Recognizing this risk, a renowned Italian electrical equipment firm partnered with CyberGlobal Italy to perform a comprehensive security assessment. Over the course of seven days, from August 1 to 11, our experts carried out both internal and external network testing, aligning the process with internationally recognized NIST and CREST standards to ensure resilience against evolving threats.

Strategic Tools Used 
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Threats Detected 
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Applications Tested
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Challenges 

CyberGlobal Italy focused was on evaluating the resilience of the client’s server infrastructure. Our team tested around 240 files and applications, carefully examining every layer of the environment to uncover potential risks.  

No malware was detected during the process, but the analysis revealed several areas that required attention.  

The most significant issues were classified as medium severity, including:  

  • Active Directory misconfigurations 
  • Outdated and unsupported software 
  • Unencrypted communication protocols (Telnet and Basic Authentication over HTTP) 

Additionally, SMB signing was not enforced on multiple servers, and information disclosure was identified through Microsoft Exchange. 

Other findings consisted of low and informational vulnerabilities, which, while less urgent, still provided valuable insight into the organization’s overall security posture.  

Solutions 

After the testing process was complete, CyberGlobal Italy provided a set of customized remediation measures to strengthen the client’s security posture and reduce exposure to potential threats.  

  • A patch management program was introduced to update outdated software and eliminate vulnerabilities linked to unsupported versions.  
  • Weak or deprecated encryption algorithms were removed and replaced with stronger standards. 
  • Customized firewall rules were applied to restrict the external exposure of sensitive services. 

To address internal risks, our team focused on Active Directory hardening, as follows: 

  • Introducing stronger authentication methods. 
  • Limiting excessive permissions. 
  • Implementing ongoing monitoring for unusual access patterns. 
  • Legacy and insecure protocols such as Telnet were replaced with secure alternatives like SSH. 
  • SMB signing was enforced across the network to maintain data integrity 

Results 

The security assessment conducted by CyberGlobal Italy revealed several vulnerabilities across both internal and external networks. No critical or high-severity issues were identified, confirming that the client’s infrastructure was already resilient against common threats.  

However, the analysis highlighted medium-level risks, including: 

  • Outdated services with known CVEs 
  • Continued use of unencrypted protocols 
  • Multiple Active Directory misconfigurations 
  • Weaknesses in cryptographic standards 

The main lessons from the assessment highlight just how important it is to keep systems updated, use encrypted channels for communication, and closely monitor Active Directory to prevent misuse.  

It also showed that regular penetration testing, followed by quick fixes and the use of strong encryption standards, is extremely important for reducing risks and building lasting security. 

93% of data breaches occur in less than one minute, yet it takes companies an average of 207 days to identify a breach.

Protect your business now. Contact us to fortify your defenses and stay ahead.