Journal:Cyberbiosecurity: A new perspective on protecting U.S. food and agricultural system

Full article title	Cyberbiosecurity: A new perspective on protecting U.S. food and agricultural system
Journal	Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology
Author(s)	Duncan, Susan E.; Reinhard, Robert; Williams, Robert C.; Ramsey, Ford; Thomason, Wade; Lee, Kiho; Dudek, Nancy; Mostaghimi, Saied; Colbert, Edward; Murch, Randall
Author affiliation(s)	Virginia Tech, Tyson Foods
Primary contact	Email: duncans at vt dot edu
Editors	Morse, Stephen Allen
Year published	2019
Volume and issue	7
Page(s)	63
DOI	10.3389/fbioe.2019.00063
ISSN	2296-4185
Distribution license	Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
Website	https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fbioe.2019.00063/full
Download	https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fbioe.2019.00063/pdf (PDF)

Abstract

Our national data and infrastructure security issues affecting the “bioeconomy” are evolving rapidly. Simultaneously, the conversation about cybersecurity of the U.S. food and agricultural system (cyber biosecurity) is incomplete and disjointed. The food and agricultural production sectors influence over 20% of the nation's economy ($6.7T) and 15% of U.S. employment (43.3M jobs). The food and agricultural sectors are immensely diverse, and they require advanced technologies and efficiencies that rely on computer technologies, big data, cloud-based data storage, and internet accessibility. There is a critical need to safeguard the cyber biosecurity of our bioeconomy, but currently protections are minimal and do not broadly exist across the food and agricultural system. Using the food safety management Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) system concept as an introductory point of reference, we identify important features in broad food and agricultural production and food systems: dairy, food animals, row crops, fruits and vegetables, and environmental resources (water). This analysis explores the relevant concepts of cyber biosecurity from food production to the end product user (such as the consumer) and considers the integration of diverse transportation, supplier, and retailer networks. We describe common challenges and unique barriers across these systems and recommend solutions to advance the role of cyber biosecurity in the food and agricultural sectors.

Keywords: plant, animal, food, cyber biosecurity, biosecurity, cyber security, agriculture, bioeconomy

Introduction: Food and agriculture cyberbiosecurity at the interface of biosecurity and cybersecurity

Public trust and confidence in the food supply are critical and influential on acceptance of data-driven innovations and technologies within the food and agriculture systems. Cyberbiosecurity is a nascent paradigm and discipline at the interface of biosafety/biosecurity, cybersecurity, and cyber-physical security (Figure 1). This new discipline has emerged alongside “big data” with the extensive and ever-increasing reliance of the life sciences on information systems technologies, rapid and profitable expansion of life science discoveries, and the growth of the U.S. bioeconomy. Protecting biological data and information within the life sciences has unique differences from the more familiar biosafety and biosecurity approaches. While the latter two categories address biological risks and threats, they do not protect against harm created when computational and information technology-dependent systems are threatened or corrupted. Just as food safety regulations target the protection of human health, incorporating cyber biosecurity strategies for the food and agriculture industries is a protective step in securing the food supply. Such efforts have the power to positively influence lives and protect the bioeconomy. Cyberbiosecurity can improve the security and stability of domestic and global food and agriculture systems. United States innovation in this realm is routinely studied and adopted around the globe, and as such, the U.S. can provide insight and leadership in cyber biosecurity of global food and agriculture systems.

References

{{Reflist|colwidth=3 This presentation is faithful to the original, with only a few minor changes to presentation, grammar, and punctuation. In some cases important information was missing from the references, and that information was added.