{"id":37757,"date":"2021-10-21T15:24:00","date_gmt":"2021-10-21T13:24:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fhi.nl\/nieuws\/how-to-keep-your-machines-secure-over-the-next-15-years\/"},"modified":"2024-07-10T13:39:14","modified_gmt":"2024-07-10T11:39:14","slug":"how-to-keep-your-machines-secure-over-the-next-15-years","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/fhi.nl\/en\/news\/how-to-keep-your-machines-secure-over-the-next-15-years\/","title":{"rendered":"How to keep your machines secure over the next 15 years?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t\t\t\tHow to keep your machines secure over the next 15 years?\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\n\t\t\t\t
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How to keep your machines secure over the next 15 years?<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Connectivity is becoming a commodity forming a risk for machine builders and factory owners. Nowadays, an average machine is connected to an internal network, to talk to SCADA and MES systems, or to the internet for remote access and data analysis.<\/p>\r\n

However, software running in the machines' controllers and operating systems gets older and new vulnerabilities are discovered to make such systems insecure. In worst case scenarios this leads to\u00a0production stops<\/a>. So, how do you guarantee that your installed machines are protected now and in the future?<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\"High\r\nHigh increase in industrial cyber attacks (source: Otorio)<\/em>\r\n\r\n\r\n

'Never touch a running system'<\/h2>\r\n

'Never touch a running system' is probably the motto of many machine builders. When an OEM machine builder makes the software he doesn't want to change it, unless there is a problem. They can't just turn machines off for an update and risk the machine working differently after a security patch. The impact can be high. Think of losing the machine's quality\/safety certification, long lasting downtime or lower quality output of the end product.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

But have you thought about the fact that outdated software running in your operating system can cause major security risks?\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

Machine lifecycle versus IT system lifecycle<\/h3>\r\n

Do you still have machines running on Windows XP? Your machines have a life expectancy of probably more than 10 years, but most operating systems only live for 5 to 7 years. So the operating system, software, libraries and code making up the machine's firmware might be state-of-the-art now, but will be hopelessly outdated before your machine is decommissioned. Therefore the risk of vulnerabilities and cyber attacks increase overtime if you don't think upfront to prevent this.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\"IT\r\nIT systems have a shorter life expectancy than your machine<\/em>\r\n\r\n\r\n

According to IT, you should always use the latest security patch configurations to keep your machines secure. However, installing patches or updating the operating system almost always results in downtime or production stops as the PLC has to be updated, reset and tested.\u00a0

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Risks machine builders are facing today<\/h2>\r\n

The machine builder needs (remote) connectivity to guarantee a higher uptime, but connectivity always brings some risks. That's why you need to have the right security in place to minimize these risks.<\/p>\r\n

Machines with outdated software run the risk that they contain known vulnerabilities that can be exploited by a hacker. Even without a connection to the internet you run security risks, such as:<\/p>\r\n