TECHNOLOGY & AI
“Manufacturing systems were built to do a few things exceptionally well ”
GUY GOLAN CEO & CO-FOUNDER , PERFORMANTA
This increase in attacks is especially alarming considering there are real growing costs to manufacturers that experience a cyber attack . In 2020 the average cost of a cyber attack stood at around $ 3.85mn according to PIMM ’ s report , and that is before factoring in ancillary impacts such as lost opportunity and damaged customer loyalty . In addition to the physical pain , it often takes manufacturers a significant amount of time to identify and effectively contain a cyber attack . The average time to identify and effectively contain an attack stood at 280 days in 2020 , the report noted .
“ And then the first wave of digitisation and automation started . ERP systems exploded into the market with a slogan of making business more effective and gaining competitive advantage . With that in mind , there was a need to connect these stand-alone systems to a central internal repository . It was done with caution while still ensuring very few could touch the systems . However , soon after digitisation , consumer flexibility ( like allowing them to choose a car ’ s specifications and colour ) became available and then paramount for manufacturers to maintain a competitive edge . This forced manufacturers to connect everything to the internet , literally opening their systems up to the world .
Why attacks on manufacturers began Cyber security consultancy Performanta ’ s CEO , Guy Golan , says : “ Manufacturing systems were built to do a few things exceptionally well . This could be chemical dosages in drugs , poisonous materials in paint , fluoride in water , smooth edges in children ' s toys , or a working steering wheel in a car , to name a few . Attacks on these systems will result in major financial losses but also , more worryingly , in lives lost .
“ For years , manufacturers treated these automated systems as the holy grail . Few could touch them and very few could tweak them . The systems were great at doing what they were set up to do and touching them would pose a real risk . As a result , many of these systems are outdated . cybermagazine . com 105