Independently judged and sponsor-neutral, the new awards program honors the people, organizations, and technologies delivering proven impact in industrial cybersecurity; winners to be announced live at the 2026 ICS Cybersecurity Conference in Nashville

BOSTON, July 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — SecurityWeek, a leading provider of cybersecurity news, analysis, and industry events, today announced the launch of the Critical Impact Awards, a new recognition program honoring the individuals, organizations, and technologies delivering measurable impact and contributions in industrial cybersecurity. Winners will be announced live at the 2026 ICS Cybersecurity Conference, taking place October 6–8, 2026, at the W Nashville, as the event celebrates its 25-year anniversary.

Unlike pay-to-play awards programs that have eroded trust across the technology industry, Critical Impact Awards are earned, not bought. Every nomination is reviewed by an independent judging panel against published criteria. Sponsorship has no influence on outcomes, and the panel publishes its rationale for each honoree, making the Critical Impact Awards the most credible recognition program in the cybersecurity industry.

“The people defending industrial and critical infrastructure rarely seek the spotlight, and too many awards programs reward marketing budgets rather than merit,” said Mike Lennon, Managing Director at SecurityWeek and Director of the ICS Cybersecurity Conference. “The Critical Impact Awards were designed to fix that, with recognition based on outcomes and evidence, and judged by practitioners, with nothing for sale.”

Open to All. Based on Merit

Nominations are completely free and open to everyone: peers, leaders, vendors, partners, customers, and journalists. Self-nominations are welcome. Judging is based on the evidence presented, not on who submitted it.

Independent Judging Panel

The Critical Impact Awards are judged by an independent panel of industrial cybersecurity insiders, including CISOs, OT security practitioners, and critical-infrastructure operators. The panel sets the criteria, reviews every nomination against them, and publishes its rationale for each honoree.

Award Categories

The inaugural Critical Impact Awards will honor achievement across two groups of categories:

Technical Excellence & Research

• Best OT Vulnerability Research
• Best OT Detection & Threat Research
• Most Innovative OT Defense
• Best OT Security Innovation
• Best ICS Incident Response

Community & Leadership

• ICS/OT Defender of the Year
• Community Champion / Mentor of the Year
• Lifetime Achievement in Industrial Security
• Emerging Leader in ICS Security
• OT/ICS Collaboration Excellence Award

Nominations and Timeline

Nominations close on August 31, 2026. Finalists will be notified in advance, and winners will be announced live on stage at the 2026 ICS Cybersecurity Conference in Nashville. To submit a nomination or review the judging criteria, visit https://www.criticalimpactawards.com/.

About the ICS Cybersecurity Conference

Launched in 2002, SecurityWeek’s Industrial Control Systems (ICS) Cybersecurity Conference is the longest-running event series focused on industrial cybersecurity, bringing together OT asset owners, security practitioners, researchers, government officials, and technology innovators from around the world. The 2026 conference will take place October 6–8, 2026, at the W Nashville, featuring more than 75 sessions over three days, along with options for advanced technical training. (www.icscybersecurityconference.com)

About SecurityWeek

SecurityWeek produces actionable content and a portfolio of industry-leading events to help cybersecurity professionals around the globe defend their organizations from increasingly complex cyber threats. SecurityWeek delivers trusted, independent coverage of the threats, technologies, and strategies shaping the cybersecurity industry. (www.securityweek.com)

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SOURCE SecurityWeek