Towards immersive cybersecurity workforce development for mission-critical IoT Systems

Critical infrastructures, such as water treatment plants (WTPs) and communication networks, are vital to our daily lives, providing essential resources. As these infrastructures increasingly rely on computer systems and internet networks, conducting cybersecurity training on expensive, real-world equipment becomes impractical due to the risk of operational interruptions. To address this challenge, we present a Digital Twin training platform that simulates three key cybersecurity concepts: Input Manipulation, Output Manipulation, and Denial of Service attacks, within the context of WTPs. These concepts are mapped to four critical functions: water level, chlorine level, water temperature, and the microbial water purification process. This paper primarily focuses on the design and development of the VR component of our digital twin platform, as well as the integration process with our hardware testbed. Initial investigations demonstrated significant potential for the experiential learning platform, serving as an effective tool for educating users about cybersecurity issues in mission-critical facilities such as WTPs.