Abstract
THIS PREPRINT IS NOW ISSUED AS IEEE ACCESS
https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10231329
The CENELEC TS 50701 is the first encompassing standard aiming at
governing cybersecurity risk management processes within the railway
industry. Although the technical maturity of this framework is
undeniable, its application in practical projects is still an active
field of discussion among practitioners, especially when dealing the
communication-heavy subsystems. Among such subsystems, signaling is
among the most critical ones. Both Communication-based Train Control
(CBTC) and European Railway Traffic Management Systems (ERTMS) heavily
rely on wireless communications for their operation. This paper
describes two cybersecurity attack scenarios regarding wireless
communications for CBTCs that can impact the safety of these systems
using the lens of the framework provided by the novel CENELEC TS 50701.
In doing so, we discuss the implications of using such guidance,
especially concerning the different interpretations found in the
literature regarding zoning communication systems, to assess and
mitigate the cybersecurity risk and improve the posture of CBTC systems
concerning the examined attacks. Experimental tests conducted in
controlled laboratory environments and high fidelity simulations have
been conducted to support the cybersecurity analysis.