Informed employees one of the 'most powerful defenses' against cyber attacks, says Cargill CISO - AgFunderNews

Cargill's chief information security officer Brian Cincera emphasizes that informed employees are among the most powerful defenses against cyber threats in the agrifood sector. The multinational agribusiness focuses on building readiness to identify threats early and act decisively rather than assuming every attack can be prevented.

The cybersecurity landscape for agrifood companies is extremely pressing but not apocalyptic, according to Cincera, who spent nearly 20 years at Pfizer before joining Cargill in 2024. The most impactful actions companies can take include strengthening threat detection capabilities, improving response protocols, and training the entire organization.

Strategic Approach

Cargill's cybersecurity strategy begins with identifying critical business operations and consistently monitoring people and processes. The company employs layers of protection across technology, processes and people—including monitoring, preparedness exercises, employee education, and phishing simulations.

The company leverages advanced AI to strengthen prevention, accelerate detection, and improve responsiveness. With approximately 155,000 employees, Cargill recognizes that one person speaking up about suspicious activity can help protect everyone around them.

Industry Collaboration

As a founding member of the Food and Ag-ISAC (Information Sharing and Analysis Center), Cargill works with industry leaders to share pre-competitive threat intelligence and effective security practices. The company helped establish this initiative in 2023 because cybersecurity is stronger when the industry collaborates.

The deeply interconnected nature of food and agriculture supply chains means an incident affecting one organization can have implications for suppliers, manufacturers, and ultimately consumers. No single organization can see every threat, making knowledge sharing essential for resilience.

Evolving Threat Landscape

Cincera assesses the current cyber threat to agrifood operations as serious but not apocalyptic. As the sector becomes more connected through AI, automation, and remotely managed systems, cyber incidents can affect not only information but also physical operations, production, and supply chains.

What keeps Cincera awake at night is the speed at which the threat landscape is changing and the potential for digital incidents to have real-world consequences across an interconnected food system. Advanced AI enables adversaries to create more convincing and scalable attacks, but it also provides defenders with new tools to prevent, detect, and respond to threats.