Defending the Future: NATO's Innovative Support for Cybersecurity Startups

Kim Nash, Deputy Bureau Chief Wall Street Journal writes, "NATO is funding startups that build technology to protect critical infrastructure from cyberattacks.The program, known as the Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic, or Diana, launched late last year and marks the first time the military alliance has subsidized early-stage companies working on energy cybersecurity and secure communications systems.We took a look at three of the 44 companies in the program: Hushmesh Inc., with CEO Manu Fontaine; Goldilock, with COO Stephen Kines; and levelQuantum, with CEO Magdalena Stobinska.

Stephen Kines, co-founder and chief operating officer of U.K. startup Goldilock, [offers]  a remote kill switch for energy grids, water facilities and other infrastructure. The idea is to shut down systems quickly to stop a cyberattack from spreading.

Goldilock’s device doesn’t use the internet, instead disabling systems via [non-IP, secure] SMS messaging, said Kines, a lawyer by training. The tech eliminates the need to send staff to field sites in an emergency to disconnect cables manually, he said.

Diana administrators introduced the Goldilock executives to a renewable energy company where Goldilock demonstrated the product during a simulated cyberattack, Kines said.

(more in the Wall Street Journal )