As industrial automation networks forge new paths based on IT technology (Ethernet protocols), production and cost efficiency will skyrocket—but potential security issues may increase, too. Although IT/OT convergence brings IT and OT networks together to streamline data exchange, remote access and connection to external networks, it also intensifies security risk exposure.

Industrial cybersecurity is a unique animal. It brings together safety principles from the OT environment and security principles from the IT environment to protect your plant’s assets (PLCs, equipment, etc.), as well as processes, networks and data. Without cybersecurity, industrial settings are vulnerable to cyber threats on a daily basis.

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Production is the lifeblood of every discrete manufacturing business, with professionals working to get high-quality product out the door quickly and within limited budgets. Advances in operational technologies and factory floor networking are giving operational technology (OT) professionals powerful tools to boost yields and reduce waste, but such tools cannot be implemented without an understanding of the resulting cybersecurity risk they open up.

Part of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), The National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence is an agency of the United States Department of Commerce which sits in a low-key building in the quiet town of Rockville, Maryland. The work that has been going on there since the NCCoE opened its doors in 2012 will have a major impact on businesses and organizations throughout the United States – and likely around the world.