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Farmers have mixed feelings on cyber threats and security their data

With the threat of cyber-attacks increasing in the agriculture industry, some farmers differ if there is a need to secure data.

Jason Perdue farms and raises cattle in Eastern Nebraska. “I don’t understand all of what’s out there and all of the possibility of what is at risk.”

He tells Brownfield he’s more concerned about livestock data than crop information. “I’m probably a little more concerned if something were to happen to our controlling system like the ventilation, feed or water in our livestock barn.”

Pork producer Aaron Kavan says protecting his data helps keep the US food supply chain secure. “There’s becoming a lot of data in feedlots and these barns. We need to be sure that information is protected and not into the hands of foreign nations that can know what we’re producing and how much we’re producing. But, also put a stop or put a block on how these barns are operating.”

Kavan told Brownfield at the Nebraska Farm Bureau Annual Convention that precision agriculture has helped made him more efficient if the technology is protected. “There is a lot of automation that happens that relies on electricity. There is a lot of computers that are used for feeding.  There’s a lot of data collected on sows and pigs that are being born.”

Both farmers say they use two-step verification and password protection, but Kavan says he will be taking additional steps to protect his data.