[Survey results] Gaining Deeper Understanding of ICS/OT Cybersecurity in 2022

[Survey results] Gaining Deeper Understanding of ICS/OT Cybersecurity in 2022 | SPONSORED

In 2022, many new, ecosystem-complete RaaS (such as Black Basta, Pandora, and LockBit 3.0) emerged and adopted a ruthless multiple extortion strategy, attacking vital departments in the critical manufacturing, energy, food and agriculture, and healthcare and public health industries. We’ve seen a heightened frequency of cyberattacks on key industry suppliers, namely those in the energy and critical manufacturing sectors. Additionally, the impact on car-related product manufacturers is particularly severe, accounting for around 24% of the victims within the manufacturing classification. As more and more car manufacturers adopt the trend of automation in their plants, measures to mitigate supply chain attacks will become a matter of do-or-die for these factories in the future.

Organizations are all too slowly realizing that hacker attacks can disrupt production operations, seriously affecting productivity and requiring hours or even days to recover. Adversaries can use various extortion methods to steal sensitive business information, leading to data breaches, property loss, and violations that weaken customer trust and harm brand value. In response to Industry 4.0 becoming a critical aspect of corporate competitiveness, management, and cybersecurity leaders should prioritize OT network protection at the top of their cybersecurity strategy. The dangers of insufficient cybersecurity are at the door, and organizations are due for a very rude awakening. First, they need to learn that ICS/OT requires a different set of security solutions, skills, processes, and methods than IT. They need to build specific cyber defenses to manage OT/ICS security risks in order to protect our critical infrastructure and industries for the future.

In the hopes of casting a spotlight on the seriousness of the situation, TXOne Networks commissioned Frost and Sullivan to conduct a global survey on the current state of OT/ICS cybersecurity in the manufacturing industry. Armed with awareness, organizations would ideally be poised to defend themselves or even fight back against the increasing number of threats and intruders. Download the report to find out what are the key insights from the survey.

This is an excerpt from the executive summary of the report written by Frost and Sullivan and sponsored by TXOne.