How IIoT Brings More Cyberattacks to the Manufacturing Industry

Kymera

 

September 24, 2018

With an IIoT network that covers the entire enterprise and has dozens of machines connected to a centralized system, you can see why it’s so tempting for cybercriminals to attempt access on your network. On the other hand, it also shows where your weaknesses are and what you can do to protect it.

During recent years, healthcare, financial service, and retail industries were more “interesting” to cyber attackers than the manufacturing industry. As business disruption and intellectual property theft emerge, more and more manufacturers are becoming victims of cybercrime.

What is Behind the Attacks?

The 2018 Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report shows us that state-sponsored attackers caused more than half of the data breaches in manufacturing, and leading motive was cyberespionage. Due to the fast convergence of OT and IT networks in these manufacturing companies, they exhibit a higher rate of cyberattack activity.

The massive loads of data were collected from January to June 2018, from millions of workloads and devices from the data center, customer cloud, and enterprise environments. They show three findings that are of most interest to cyber attackers. They are the way data is stolen from manufacturing networks, the volume of internal movement between systems, and the frequency of external remote access.

Data Exfiltration

With multiple sensors that aggregate data at the IIoT network’s gateway and send it to a cloud database, an IIoT network architecture doesn’t typically indicate a cyber attack. This data exfiltration behavior is sometimes related to other threat behaviors that can point to an assault in progress. Organizations must ensure that systems are sending data to the approved and intended external systems instead to the attackers who want to steal critical assets.

Internal Movement between Systems

There are many gateways (connected to each other for a better peer-to-peer communication) in a manufacturing network that communicate with smart machines and devices. To map out a manufacturing network and find critical assets to steal, cyber attackers use the same self-discovery used by those peer-to-peer devices. Cyber attackers can thus move laterally across the entire system until they find a way to complete their mission. That type of cyber attacker behavior is known as internal reconnaissance and lateral movement. If a higher-than-normal rate of lateral movement or malicious internal reconnaissance behavior is detected, it’s an indicator of possible attacks on the network.

External Remote Access

When an internal host device connects to an external server, it is known as external remote access. One of the most common command-and-control behaviors in manufacturing is the use of external access tools. This process is also a gateway for attackers to infiltrate a network by hijacking an external remote access connection.

What Can You Do About It?

Manufacturers used to rely on exclusive and customized protocols that made it harder for attackers to mount an attack. However, after the conversion from proprietary to standard protocols, it has made it easier for them to steal, spread, and spy. Today’s factories have Internet-enabled production lines that support remote management and data telemetry. It connects their IIoT machines to networks that rely on communication with enterprise applications and computing devices.

Systems critical for supply-chain processes and thin production lines need to have the best security access controls that can isolate a manufacturing system (however, most manufacturers don’t invest in them for economic reasons.) Real-time monitoring and network visibility are vital for identifying the earliest signs of cyber attacks in any infrastructure of this kind. Also, security analysis should be performed frequently.

Cybersecurity is today’s number one problem for organizations that rely on IoT. To enhance existing cybersecurity teams, we need to use artificial intelligence solutions to detect and respond to cyber threats faster and help stay ahead of cybercriminals.

For more information https://kymerasystems.com/

 

 

Related Articles


Changing Scene

  • Meet Jeremy Warnock, Brave’s New Vice President of Engineering

    Meet Jeremy Warnock, Brave’s New Vice President of Engineering

    Brave Control Solutions Inc. was recently pleased to announce that Jeremy Warnock has joined the team as Vice President of Operations. Jeremy will lead the delivery teams and be responsible for services and solution delivery. Jeremy’s career started at Ford Motor Company as an engineer, then later at JMP Solutions where he served as a… Read More…

  • Westburne and Kinova Announce Groundbreaking Partnership

    Westburne and Kinova Announce Groundbreaking Partnership

    Westburne is thrilled to announce a groundbreaking partnership that is set to redefine the landscape of collaborative robotics. Westburne has joined forces with Kinova, a global provider in robotics innovation, to deliver cutting-edge solutions that will transform industries and elevate Westburne’s commitment to technological advancement. This partnership marks a significant milestone in Westburne’s journey towards… Read More…


Sponsored Content
The Easy Way to the Industrial IoT

The way to the Industrial IoT does not have to be complicated. Whether access to valuable data is required or new, data-driven services are to be generated, Weidmuller enables its customers to go from data to value the easy way. Weidmuller’s comprehensive and cutting-edge IIoT portfolio applies to greenfield and brownfield applications. Weidmuller offers components and solutions from data acquisition, data pre-processing, data communication and data analysis.

Visit Weidmuller’s Industrial IoT Portfolio.


ADVANCED Motion Controls Takes Servo Drives to New Heights (and Depths) with FlexPro Extended Environment Product Line

Advanced Motion Controls is proud to announce the addition of six new CANopen servo drives with Extended Environment capabilities to their FlexPro line. These new drives join AMC’s existing EtherCAT Extended Environment FlexPro drives, making the FlexPro line the go-to solution for motion control applications in harsh environments.

Many motion control applications take place in conditions that are less than ideal, such as extreme temperatures, high and low pressures, shocks and vibrations, and contamination. Electronics, including servo drives, can malfunction or sustain permanent damage in these conditions.

Read More


Service Wire Co. Announces New Titles for Key Executives

Bruce Kesler and Mark Gatewood have been given new titles and responsibilities for Service Wire Co.

Bruce Kesler has assumed the role of Senior Director – Business Development. Bruce will be responsible for Service Wire’s largest strategic accounts and our growing Strategic Accounts Team.

Mark Gatewood has been promoted to the role of Vice President – Sales & Marketing. In this role, Gatewood will lead the efforts of Service Wire Company’s entire sales and marketing organization in all market verticals.

Read More


Tri-Mach Announces the Purchase of an Additional 45,000 sq ft. Facility

Tri-Mach Elmira Facility

Recently, Tri-Mach Inc. was thrilled to announce the addition of a new 45,000 sq ft. facility. Located at 285 Union St., Elmira, ON, this facility expands Tri-Mach’s capabilities, allowing them to better serve the growing needs of their customers.

Positioning for growth, this additional facility will allow Tri-Mach to continue taking on large-scale projects, enhance product performance testing, and provide equipment storage for their customers. The building will also be the new home to their Skilled Trades Centre of Excellence.

Read More


JMP Parent Company, CONVERGIX Acquires AGR Automation, Expanding Global Reach

Convergix Automation Solutions has completed the acquisition of AGR Automation (“AGR”), a UK-based provider of custom, high-performance automation design and systems integration primarily to the life sciences industry.

Following Convergix’s acquisitions of JMP Solutions in August 2021 and Classic Design in February 2022, AGR marks the third investment in Crestview’s strategy to build Convergix into a diversified automation solutions provider targeting the global $500+ billion market, with a particular focus on the $70 billion global systems integration and connectivity segments. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Read More


Latest Articles

  • Maximizing Motor Efficiency: Navigating the Impact of VFDs on Motors

    Maximizing Motor Efficiency: Navigating the Impact of VFDs on Motors

    Running a motor directly from the power source produces uniform, sinusoidal waveforms but wastes energy due to continuous speed operation regardless of the load requirements. To enhance efficiency, variable frequency drives (VFDs) control motor speed, reduce energy consumption, and minimize equipment wear. However, VFDs use pulse-width modulation (PWM) to supply electrical pulses instead of a… Read More…

  • The Path to Net Zero with Smart Building Technologies from ABB

    The Path to Net Zero with Smart Building Technologies from ABB

    By Krystie Johnston – Building operations account for 30% of global final energy consumption and 26% of global energy-related emissions. This sector, if entirely net zero, would contribute a significant percentage to reduced CO2 emissions worldwide1. In fact, technologies exist already to help buildings reach net zero today. Robert Palajsa, Territory manager for the smart… Read More…