07 Oct Beyond the blueprint
Posted at 10:30h in Features, Selected-Features by Mike Dingle
View the original post of this article here.
Jeff Zindel, Vice President of Cybersecurity Programs, Parsons, looks at how integrated cybersecurity is essential for smart cities.
With more than half of the world’s population now living in urban areas, ensuring cities function efficiently, securely and sustainably for those who live and work within their boundaries has never been more critical. Smart city initiatives, once considered aspirational, are now being heralded by policymakers at all levels, across all regions. Smart cities are increasingly being viewed as a pathway to economic diversification, improved communication and connectivity, reduced resource waste and lower carbon emissions.
Countries in the Middle East, particularly Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar, are gaining global attention for their futuristic smart city developments, which are built with advanced infrastructure and technology integration leveraging the Internet of Things (IoT) and artificial intelligence (AI). Current and past successes, coupled with visionary leadership, are attracting foreign investment and top talent, creating powerful models of private-public collaboration. These smart cities are transforming infrastructure into more connected, efficient, responsive, sustainable and user-friendly systems.
Why integrating cybersecurity with design matters
The interconnected nature of smart cities makes cybersecurity a priority. Historically, design and cybersecurity existed in silos, with cybersecurity typically treated as an afterthought. In the context of smart cities, that approach is untenable. Failing to incorporate cybersecurity into the design phase creates substantial risks. Vulnerabilities in interconnected smart transportation systems, public safety networks, energy grids, smart buildings and water and wastewater systems, can be exploited leading to potentially catastrophic consequences. These risks include operational disruption, safety risks, cascading failures across interconnected systems, substantial financial losses, loss of foreign investment, reputational damage, data breaches and privacy violations.
Given these profound implications, why is it vital to integrate cybersecurity during the design phase? Retrofitting security after project development and commissioning is costly, disruptive and often impractical. Consider a smart energy project: attempting to retrofit cybersecurity into operational facilities and systems after deployment – across network architecture, control systems, edge devices, substations and other assets – can result in major service disruptions. Moreover, the expense to retrofit the infrastructure post construction can be exponential; far greater than the cost of integrating cybersecurity during the design phase. Workarounds may not fully address cybersecurity vulnerabilities or provide the visibility and information required to effectively monitor and protect the assets and systems. By contrast, incorporating a cybersecurity strategy and programme into smart city design and planning from the outset, covering security architecture, controls and governance, delivers both resilience and long-term efficiency.
Key measures aligned with each country’s standards and regulations should include:
- Continuous risk assessments for critical infrastructure.
- Secure architecture with network segmentation.
- Data protection and privacy-by-design.
- Supply chain security with forensic verification of hardware and software.
- Centralised asset inventories with automated discovery of connected devices.
- Universal zero trust privileged access for all access points and stakeholders.
- Cybersecurity performance and compliance management.
- Establishment of a Security Operations Centre (SOC) monitoring IT, OT, IoT and cloud infrastructure.
Together, these proactive measures provide multiple layers of security that reduce long-term risk, mitigate costs and strengthen resilience, especially as cyber threats to digital infrastructure evolve in scale and sophistication.
Escalating cyber threats and attacks
The rapid adoption of digital technologies is accelerating the digitisation of smart city systems, expanding the attack surface and heightening the need for robust cybersecurity. The UAE Cyber Security Council recently reported they are countering more than 200,000 cyber-attacks per day, with the government sector accounting for 30% of the attacks. The financial stakes are rising in the GCC, the average cost of a cyber incident has reached $6.9 million – substantially higher than the global average of $4.2 million.
Compounding the challenge, cyberattacks are becoming more sophisticated. Addressing this threat landscape requires continuous monitoring of digital infrastructure to identify vulnerabilities and threats, ensure compliance and respond to indicators of compromise and cyber incidents. True resilience, however, must be built in from the start. Embedding cybersecurity at the design phase helps best prepare smart city systems to withstand and adapt to emerging threats before going live.
AI governance
AI adoption in smart cities is accelerating under a do-it-now mindset, where speed often outpaces governance. However, research from IBM and the Ponemon Institute warns that ungoverned AI systems are not only more likely to be breached but also have significantly greater cost implications when they are.
Poorly secured AI systems can be manipulated by malicious actors, leading to misinformation or even control and disruption of critical infrastructure. To reduce these risks, AI systems in smart cities must be protected by a multi-layered security framework emphasising access control, data privacy and robust governance.
At the same time, AI should be leveraged as a defensive cybersecurity capability, playing a significant role in ongoing vulnerability management and advanced threat detection and response. With the right guardrails, AI can strengthen resilience rather than become a source of new vulnerabilities.
Securing the supply chain
The safety and resilience of smart cities depends on securing their complex vendor and contractor ecosystems, because even a single weak link in the supply chain can lead to severe compromise. According to the World Economic Forum’s Global Cybersecurity Outlook 2025, 54% of large organisations view supply chain challenges as the greatest barrier to achieving cyber resilience. Mitigating supply chain risks must begin at the smart city design stage, before systems are procured or deployed.
Key actions include:
- Establishing and enforcing a supply chain risk management (SCRM) policy that requires vendors and contractors to undergo rigorous security due diligence.
- Analysing hardware and software to detect vulnerabilities and hidden risks.
- Implementing zero trust privileged access for all vendors and contractors throughout design, construction, operations and maintenance.
Collectively, these measures protect against counterfeit components, outdated equipment and unauthorised access – critical for the security, reliability and resilience of smart cities.
Cybersecurity compliance: a strategic imperative
Smart cities generate massive volumes of data governed by both local and international laws and regulations. In the GCC, cybersecurity compliance requirements are especially stringent, where safeguarding critical infrastructure is treated as a matter of national security.
Compliance is no longer a box-checking exercise; it has become a cornerstone of effective cyber risk management. Modern compliance management tools automate tracking, audits and reporting, strengthening security posture and operational efficiency while lowering OPEX. Embedding compliance into the design phase further enhances oversight, reduces vulnerabilities and limits exposure to financial and reputational risk.
Building cybersecurity into the blueprint
Proactive integration not only strengthens resilience against increasingly sophisticated cyber threats, but it also enhances efficiency, quality, productivity and reliability.
Resilient smart cities require:
- Cybersecurity-first design principles grounded in proactive strategies and governance.
- Supply chain risk management beyond compliance.
- Responsible AI governance.
- Continuous monitoring and compliance systems.
Cybersecurity must be a key criterion in selecting engineering partners, so they can deliver a cyber-secure digital ecosystem that enables frictionless data sharing across sectors, authorities and citizens.
It should not be an afterthought or retrofit. Cybersecurity must be an integral part of smart city design, shaping not only how cities function, but how they thrive in an increasingly digital, interconnected and high-risk world.