Trend Micro has published a study showing the threats of production networks

Trend Micro Incorporated has announced a new study that demonstrates the threats facing production networks that are still using outdated technology, including risks to intellectual property and production processes.

The report “Ensuring the security of intelligent factories: threats to production environments in the era of Industry 4.0” describes the security aspects of a new era for manufacturing based on IoT and connections worldwide. Manufacturers are investing heavily in the convergence of traditional operating technology (OT) with IT networks in 2019, adding new technologies to environments that are still vulnerable to problems for more than 10 years, such as Conficker (a computer worm).

“Industry 4.0 offers unprecedented opportunities to increase productivity, improve process efficiency and implement on-demand production, but also significantly changes the risk model of threats to these sites,” said Steve Kuen, executive vice president of network protection and hybrid cloud security for Trend Micro. . “As shown in this study, the convergence of IT and OT can unwittingly have a serious impact on production lines and lead to the loss of IP and competitive advantage. Trend Micro will continue to support the industry by providing innovative solutions based on artificial intelligence to protect important business data and processes throughout the connected world. “

The report highlights the unique triple threat faced by manufacturing, including the risks associated with IT, OT and IP. Previously isolated operating networks connected to the IT network to increase efficiency, but this causes unsafe proprietary protocols and potentially outdated OT equipment, which is often not corrected often enough because of its criticality. There is a sharp discrepancy between the significant operations performed by these devices and the fact that they have been working for years with known vulnerabilities.

According to Gartner, “the networks and assets of OT, as well as their security implications, have not been discovered and managed for many years. As a result, existing OT networks are not segmented using a set of production protocols, unidentified assets, legacy systems and devices. These industrial components have many unprotected communication channels with corporate / IT networks and use different vendor architectures and security standards. ”

In addition to supporting legacy infrastructure with known flaws, these systems detect new vulnerabilities more often than ever before. Zero-day vulnerabilities acquired in man-machine interfaces (HMI) of industrial control systems increased by more than 200 percent in 2018 compared with the previous year.

Thus, manufacturers are subject to both targeted and conventional malware, including attacks on cryptocurrency, which can damage key production processes, consuming computational power and causing network latency. Extortionists are also a serious threat to manufacturers if an attack affects production.

To help mitigate the impact of Industry 4.0 threats, Trend Micro recommends that manufacturers be aware of the basics of cybersecurity, such as restricting user access and disabling directory listings, and identifying and prioritizing key assets for protection.

About Trend Micro

Trend Micro Incorporated, the global leader in cybersecurity solutions, helps make the world safer for sharing digital information. Innovative solutions for consumers, businesses and governments provide layered security for data centers, cloud workloads, networks and endpoints. With more than 6,000 employees in 50 countries and with the world’s most advanced research and exploration for global threats, Trend Micro enables organizations to protect their connected world.

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