Putting it into Practice


In the following section we are going to start putting the new knowledge you’ve just been exposed to into practice. We will introduce you to a few more tools that will help improve your farm’s cybersecurity preparedness and we’ll give you some detailed worksheets to put these tools into practice within your farm business.

1. The on-farm network map is a diagram that shows all the devices and important software tools present on the network and how they are connected. Network maps are a very useful tool for understanding what might be affected if one part of your network is compromised by a cyber criminal. Network maps are also helpful for communicating with any external IT service provider or cybersecurity expert. The  🗺️⁠⁠Creating an On-Farm Network Map⁠  worksheet will show you how to map out your farm’s network to get a birdseye view of your digital infrastructure. 

2. Working closely with your technology vendors is an important part of cybersecurity preparedness. The  ❓⁠⁠Key Questions to Ask Your Vendors & Suppliers⁠  worksheet will help you communicate with your vendors and retailers about their cybersecurity practices - what they do to keep your data safe, what they can do if your equipment is hacked, and more. This is especially important for companies that handle significant amounts of your farm’s financial or agricultural data .

3. A cybersecurity policy can be as simple as a sticky note attached to all the computer monitors on your farm that has numbers to call in case of attack, or a series of documents that outline software procurement security standards and the detailed steps to take if your farm is cyber attacked. The  ⁠⁠Building a Farm Cybersecurity Policy⁠  worksheet will guide you through the process of creating a cybersecurity policy for your farm.

4. A cyber fire drill involves practicing what steps you would take if your farm was cyberattacked. What would you do first, who would you call, what would you turn off, how would you protect animals or crops, and how would you recover from the cyberattack to resume operations? Practicing a cyber fire drill helps you to think things through before a crisis, helps you keep your cool under pressure and helps ensure your approach to cybersecurity works for you and your team. The  🚨⁠⁠Conducting a Cybersecurity ‘Fire Drill’⁠  worksheet will help you make a plan for your first cyber fire drill.

Keep reading to get more information on each of these tools before you start working your way through the worksheets. 

You may find that some of the information presented in the section below is repeated in the worksheet itself. This is by design, because the worksheets are intended to be used as standalone documents. This way you can print it out, come back to it after completing the content of this training module, or share the worksheet with someone else who might be interested in farm cybersecurity.



Next:  🗺️⁠⁠Creating an On-Farm Network Map⁠