Smart City Systems Implementation Resource Guide

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has published a Trust in Smart City Systems report. It is intended to serve as a resource guide for discussions between smart city decision-makers, designers, and implementers during the initial, high-level design of a smart city project and make decisions based on a more complete understanding of the tradeoffs. As the report notes, smart city projects are those that integrate information technology (IT) with the management and operation of civic functions, and include operational technology (OT) and public service requirements. As many water and wastewater utilities are likely well aware, these projects can involve and impact their systems. Given that smart city projects are challenging endeavors and can fail or underperform for many reasons, CISA submits it is necessary to consider the ways in which each stakeholder will design and in what ways the perspectives are siloed, to identify an integrated solution that address the broad scope of smart city projects. The report provides recommendations to help inform these considerations and avoid potential issues. Read the report at CISA.