CYBERSECURITY — 02

Risk-Based Security Controls

A checklist treats every system the same. A control set built on consequence does not — it spends the most effort where a compromise would matter the most.

OPERATIONAL CONTEXT

A control that costs the same everywhere shouldn't be applied everywhere

Generic control frameworks are written to apply broadly, which means applied uniformly they either overprotect low-consequence systems at real operational cost or underprotect high-consequence ones because the framework had no way to know which was which. Neither outcome is defensible when a regulator, or an incident, asks why a given control was or wasn't there.

GSS starts from consequence rather than from the framework. A system whose compromise could affect safety, security, or continuity of a protected function gets a materially different control set than a system whose compromise would be an inconvenience — and that distinction is documented, not assumed.

The result is a control set that is defensible on its own terms: every control on the list traces to a specific risk it addresses, and every risk of consequence has a control addressing it. That traceability is what a regulator, an auditor, or a new security director needs to see, and it is what a checklist alone cannot produce.

METHODOLOGY
01System CategorizationSystems grouped by the consequence of compromise, not by network location or vendor.
02Threat & Risk AnalysisRealistic threat scenarios evaluated against each system category.
03Control SelectionControls chosen and tailored to the specific risk and consequence identified, not applied uniformly.
04Gap AnalysisExisting controls compared against the target set, with gaps prioritized by consequence.
05Implementation SupportControl deployment sequenced to close the highest-consequence gaps first.
06DocumentationThe rationale behind every control captured for audit, licensing, and regulatory review.
CORE CAPABILITIES
Consequence-based system categorizationControl set design and tailoringGap analysis and prioritizationRegulatory-defensible documentationLegacy and OT system accommodation
RELEVANT ENVIRONMENTS
Operating nuclear facilitiesSmall modular reactorsNew nuclear buildOther high-consequence critical infrastructure

Put controls where the consequence actually is

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