The energy sector is a cornerstone of national security, ensuring the delivery of critical infrastructure services and supporting transportation systems. Recognizing the importance of protecting this vital industry, Trustwave SpiderLabs has released the comprehensive 2025 Trustwave Risk Radar Report: Energy and Utilities Sector.
The primary report is joined by two specialized supporting pieces of research focusing on these critical areas of concern:
The primary report analyzes the threats facing the energy and utilities sector. It identifies significant trends shaping the industry, including the rise of ransomware attacks, the convergence of operational technology (OT) and information technology (IT), and increasing regulatory pressures.
Some of the report's key findings include:
Additionally, the report delves into the growing sophistication of threat actors, providing a detailed analysis of their tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) organized by attack stage. This intelligence equips the energy and utilities organizations with actionable insights to enhance their ability to anticipate, detect, and mitigate potential attacks.
For this report, Trustwave SpiderLabs defined the energy and utilities sector to encompass the production, distribution, and storage of oil and gas, renewable energy, and nuclear energy, as well as the generation and delivery of electricity, gas, and water. This comprehensive approach reflects the energy and utility sector’s complexity and the interconnected nature of its diverse systems, each presenting distinct security challenges.
Why the white and black hats focus on energy is simple. Respectively, it is important to have an uninterrupted energy supply to the people and the potential to make money through a criminal venture.
There is already evidence of what can transpire from a ransomware attack on a single entity. In the case of Colonial Pipeline, the result was the secession of oil deliveries, shut down pipelines, and panicky customers who lined up to buy gasoline even in unaffected areas.
While the report goes into greater detail, here are a few reasons why the energy and utilities sector is often targeted:
The sector faces unique challenges that heighten its vulnerability to diverse threats, ranging from ransomware attacks targeting critical infrastructure to spear-phishing campaigns exploiting human weaknesses.
Some of the key vulnerabilities discussed include aging infrastructure, reliance on legacy systems, and the inherent complexity of OT environments. When combined with the sector's geopolitical significance and the potential for widespread societal disruption, these factors make energy and utilities a prime target for malicious actors.
The sector's increasing reliance on digital technologies, remote operations, and cloud-based systems has significantly expanded the attack surface, introducing new vulnerabilities that demand robust cybersecurity measures.
For example, the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) recently warned that US power grids are becoming more susceptible to cyberattacks, with the number of vulnerable points in electrical networks increasing by approximately 60 per day. This alarming trend emphasizes the critical need for energy providers to strengthen their cybersecurity defenses.
The Trustwave SpiderLabs report covers the immense geopolitical significance held by the energy and utilities sector. Disrupting or sabotaging energy systems can destabilize a country's economy, hinder military operations, and disrupt the functioning of key sectors like healthcare, transportation, and communications.
While the report focuses on the energy and utilities sector, we encourage those in other sectors to download the report as many of the findings are pertinent to a wider audience.
All three reports and their accompanying webinars can be found and downloaded from this page.