In this age of high-efficiency production and processing, thousands of dollars’ worth of automation and monitoring devices and equipment rely on robust cabling solutions to work properly.

Risks to the control levels of industrial networks have been on the rise – and yet many are not aware of the many vulnerabilities and weaknesses these environments have. The SANS 2016 State of ICS Security Survey indicates this is a growing concern of those surveyed.

The SANS 2016 State of ICS Security Survey Report indicates that many of the ICS professionals who responded to the survey have new job titles such as ICS cyber security program manager, ICS security project manager, IT/OT architect and director of cyber security for building and facilities systems.

Companies and countries around the world are competing to increase their market share in all manufacturing sectors. A key way to compete is to increase productivity, a measure of output compared to input, and it is improved through the use of digital technologies such as those of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT).

It’s not a surprise that ensuring the reliability and availability of control systems is the number one business driver for securing industrial automation systems. It was confirmed in the SANS 2016 State of ICS Security Survey. Other top reasons for wanting to improve security include lowering risk, ensuring employee safety, meeting regulatory compliance and preventing damage to systems.