Cybersecurity Advisory: Pro-Russia Hacktivists Conduct Opportunistic Attacks Against US and Global Critical Infrastructure
December 10, 2025 - The latest Joint Cybersecurity Advisory (JCSA) reports that pro-Russia hacktivist groups are currently conducting lower-impact but persistent cyberattacks targeting critical infrastructure. These attacks often exploit minimally secured, internet-facing virtual network computing (VNC) connections to access operational technology (OT) control devices—including those used in water and wastewater systems.
Water and wastewater utilities should review the advisory and implement the top recommended actions to strengthen cybersecurity resilience and reduce exposure to these threats.
OT owners and operators and critical infrastructure entities should take the following steps to reduce the risk of attacks through VNC connections:
1. Reduce exposure of OT assets to the public-facing internet.
2. Adopt mature asset management processes, including mapping data flows and access points.
Ensure that OT assets are using robust authentication procedures
Source: SC Waters
JD Solomon Inc. provides solutions for program development, asset management, and facilitation at the nexus of facilities, infrastructure, and the environment.
Illustrate: The chances of effective communication diminish significantly without clear visualizations.
Illustration is the second step in the FINESSE Fishbone Diagram®. The “I” reminds us that once a problem is defined, it must be communicated in ways that decision makers can see, grasp, and act upon. Illustration is not about decoration. It is about clarity, credibility, and providing the information that decision makers need.
The Illustrate bone includes all of the visuals, including graphics, photos, and videos, that are used to communicate issues with high levels of complexity and uncertainty.
Why Illustration (Visualization) Matters
Decision makers rarely fail because they lack intelligence or resources. They fail because the issues they face are abstract, technical, or buried in detail. Illustration bridges that gap. It turns data into stories, systems into diagrams, and the unrelatable into relatable.
Visualization is not optional. Without it, even the most carefully defined problem will remain stuck in technical silos. With it, communication becomes strategic and memorable.
Three Components of Visualization
The Illustrate bone of the FINESSE Fishbone Diagram® includes all the visuals and graphics we use to make large data sets understandable. Edward Tufte's reminder is instructive: "Graphical excellence is a matter of substance, of statistics, and of design.”
Interestingly, two of the aspects relate to information, and one relates to decoration.
In FINESSE, effective visualization rests on three components.
Essential Graphics
There are six essential visuals: pictures, geospatial maps, time series charts, tables, tornado diagrams, and guiding graphics. Each serves a distinct purpose. As a rule, all six should be part of every presentation.
Another rule is to use one of each type. Find the one that matters most. Keep your message clear!
Single, Concise Messages
Every visual should have a single key message, stated briefly and concisely. Less is more.
Color Discipline
Black, dark blue, and white are always effective. Grayscale and pastels provide balance and serve as undistracting backgrounds. Red, yellow, and orange should be used sparingly for emphasis, not as primary colors.
Color discipline is also important for presentations for the visually impaired, who represent between 8 and 25 percent of senior management. Choosing the right colors and contrast is important to avoid alienating or losing a key block of your audience.
Techniques for Effective Visualization
1. Tables Over Graphs
Tables are often more effective than graphs in business communication. Graphs are useful when data sets are large or complex, but in most cases, a table suffices. The rule is always to use a table, and sometimes use a graph.
Scatter diagrams, matrices, histograms, and pie charts are not inherently bad, but they can take up valuable time to explain. Decision makers have limited attention. Use these visuals sparingly, and only when a deeper technical debate is the goal.
3. Guiding Graphics for Energy and Vision
Every presentation should have a guiding graphic on the wall. It captures the team’s energy and vision while also depicting the high‑level schedule. It lets decision makers know where we are and where we are going. A guiding graphic is the one place where a decorative visual belongs—anchored in information but infused with inspiration.
Most visuals should be informative and not decorative. Making big decisions is not an art project.
4. Avoid Excessive Videos
Remember, you have limited time with high-level leaders. And those leaders want the facts. Videos and embedded video clips tend to eat up time and distract attention. For these reasons, use videos as supplemental information.
5. Clearly Include the Key Message
The single key message, stated briefly and concisely, for each visual should be clearly stated. For the key six visuals, this should appear as the caption and the alternative text. For videos, the key message should be included in the captions or closed captions, and ideally also in the video.
Facilitating with FINESSE
Facilitators must ensure that the majority of visuals are information visuals. Outside presenters often overdo the number and complexity of their graphics. The facilitator’s role is to keep visuals consistent with FINESSE principles, which requires active interaction with external presenters prior to sharing information with the group. When guiding participants to solutions that are created, understood, and accepted by all, the burden of effective communication is on the sender (you), not the receiver.
Communicate with FINESSE
The “I” in FINESSE Fishbone Diagram® stands for Illustrate. The chances of effective communication diminish significantly without clear illustrations. On the other hand, well-done visuals allow technical professionals and decision makers to navigate complexity and uncertainty with confidence.
Do you have a formal approach for illustrating (visualizing) big issues with high complexity and uncertainty? Are you Communicating with FINESSE®?
JD Solomon Inc. provides solutions for program development, asset management, and facilitation at the nexus of facilities, infrastructure, and the environment.
JD Solomon writes and speaks on decision-making, reliability, risk, and communication for leaders and technical professionals. His work connects technical disciplines with human understanding to help people make better decisions and build stronger systems. Learn more at www.jdsolomonsolutions.com and www.communicatingwithfinesse.com
Demonstrate deficiencies in asset data quality through valued applications like Renewal & Replacement Forecasts and Capital Plan Development.
Most asset managers claim their Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS) or Enterprise Asset Management System (EAMS) data is 90-95% accurate. In practice, audits and lifecycle modeling show far lower reliability. The challenge is communicating deficiencies without alienating stakeholders, while still driving improvement.
Why Pointing Out Asset Data Quality Fails
Large organizations manage tens of thousands of assets, each with multiple attributes. Resources and processes are rarely sufficient to maintain accuracy across this scale. Acknowledging the gap is difficult, but ignoring it undermines planning and risk management.
1 No One Wants to Admit It
Staff avoid admitting deficiencies to protect professional credibility. Frontline teams focus on operations and assume data changes slowly. Executives emphasize data quality but often rely on assumptions rather than verification. There is usually great pride in the number of years and the investments that have gone into creating the asset data.
2 Our Biases Trick Us
Cognitive biases reinforce overconfidence in asset data. Frontline staff fall into optimism bias, believing their efforts are sufficient. Senior leaders exhibit confirmation bias, assuming long-standing initiatives guarantee quality.
3 No Easy Solution
Data sets span decades and hundreds of thousands of records. Internal staff lack time for cleansing, while consultants lack familiarity with the equipment. Emerging practices—such as AI validation, reliability-centered maintenance, and industry standards like ISO 55000—offer partial solutions but remain resource-intensive.
How to Communicate Asset Data Quality
Apply asset data in practical planning tools. Deficiencies become visible through forecasting and prioritization exercises. This approach shifts the focus from abstract data cleanup to actionable improvement.
Develop an Asset Renewal and Replacement Forecast
Renewal and replacement (R&R) forecasts estimate reinvestment needs based on age, condition, and lifecycle. One byproduct is that R&R forecasts expose gaps in asset attributes when models fail due to inaccurate data or fail to align with observed performance. Forecasting also strengthens capital planning by linking data quality to funding decisions.
Capital improvement plans rely on accurate inventories for prioritization and cost estimation. Incomplete or inaccurate data surfaces quickly when aligning projects with funding and strategic goals. Capital plans, therefore, validate asset data while guiding long-term investment.
Demonstrate deficiencies through valued applications like Renewal & Replacement Forecasts and Capital Plan Development. Stakeholders draw their own conclusions when results fail to meet data quality expectations. The gaps in asset data quality create a tangible improvement goal rather than an abstract data-cleansing goal.
Need help getting started? JD Solomon Inc. specializes in strategic asset and work management support—bringing clarity to what you own, its condition, and its value.
JD Solomon writes and speaks on decision-making, reliability, risk, and communication for leaders and technical professionals. His work connects technical disciplines with human understanding to help people make better decisions and build stronger systems. Learn more at www.jdsolomonsolutions.com and www.communicatingwithfinesse.com.
