Rise of Wireless Technology Poses Security Risks for Manufacturers
EL SEGUNDO, CA — Increasing networking of manufacturing equipment is opening up factories to the benefits of flexible production and wireless mobile communications. However, the rising use of connected devices is also exposing production sites to security breaches and cyber-attacks, compelling companies to seek ways to protect their networks, according to a new white paper from IHS Technology.
Wireless network connections in industrial automation components in global factories will rise from 2.1 million in 2012 to 3.4 million by 2017, as presented in the attached figure. This increase magnifies risk factors to manufacturing environments.
Do the worm
The issue of security in manufacturing networks became front-page news in 2010, when the Stuxnet computer worm afflicted industrial control systems in Iran. Stuxnet was designed to both subvert and engage in the surveillance of supervisory control and data acquisition systems made by Siemens.