CISA Hosts Successful 12th Chemical Sector Security Summit

NEW ORLEANS, La. – The 12^th Chemical Sector Security Summit kicked off on July 16, 2019, in New Orleans, Louisiana. The three-day event, co-hosted by the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the Chemical Sector Security Council, brought together government and industry national security experts from all over the country to network and share best practices about chemical security.

“Chemical security is critical to our economy, our way of life, and our national security,” said Christopher Krebs, Director of CISA. “Events like the Chemical Sector Security Summit are an important way to exchange industry knowledge and best practices, and helps us build a collective defense against the threats that face us today.”

The Summit is considered by both government and private industry as the signature event for chemical security and an opportunity to build strong networks of collaboration that mitigate the risk to critical infrastructure. Securing chemicals and chemical infrastructure in a growing and evolving threat environment requires cross collaboration between facility owners/operators, industry, law enforcement, community members, and all levels of government and the private sector.

“As we reflect on our achievements and the challenges in front of us, may we continue our collaboration toward a common goal of securing our chemical facilities across the nation,” said Matt Fridley, Chair of the Chemical Sector Coordinating Council.

The Chemical Sector Security Summit is a unique networking and educational forum for representatives across the chemical and interconnected sectors—including communications, energy, transportation, and water—to learn, share perspectives, and engage in dialogue. The sessions feature topics such as the evolving chemical threat environment, Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) regulatory updates, industrial control systems vulnerabilities, cybersecurity supply chain risk management, unmanned aerial systems, etc.

For more information, please visit the 2019 Chemical Sector Security Summit.