Attention industrial engineers: If you're not thinking about how secure that new wiz-bang-flashy PLC or PAC is before you purchase it, you're setting yourself up for a world of pain down the road.

Industrial control systems are used across a wide range of industries, from manufacturing and fabrication, to electricity generation and transmission, to oil refining and water treatment—all industries where a network security compromise could mean huge losses of capital for the business.

Recently we’re seeing many of these traditionally proprietary control systems—distributed control systems, PLCs, and SCADA applications—adding new, more open technologies like Ethernet and TCP/IP. And with organizations' increasing interest in the business advantages of obtaining system data, industrial control systems are now being connected to information technology (IT) networks.

That's scary.

Topics: Internet of Things, Tips, IoT, Networking, Security, IIoT, Industrial Internet of Things

You never feel like you know enough about security.

And security issues and recommendations are constantly changing, as the bad guys try to hack in and the good guys try to keep them out. 

Here are a couple of new blog posts on this important subject, both by Opto 22's Matt Newton, who has years of experience in both automation and IT (information technology). 

Topics: Internet of Things, PLCs, IoT, optonews, PACs, Security, IIoT, Industrial Internet of Things, OptoNews 2017-01-18

We've recently released PAC Project version R9.5003, with enhancements for PAC Display and SoftPAC, plus bug fixes.

In PAC Display Pro, we've improved response time for URL windows and URL controls by reducing the number of web page reloads they use.

Topics: Updates, optonews, PACs, PAC Project, OptoNews 2017-01-18

We're honored to be chosen by Automation World readers as a preferred supplier!

Every year as part of their Leadership in Automation Program, Automation World asks their readers—that's you—to choose their go-to suppliers. These are the automation equipment manufacturers that automation engineers most trust. 

Topics: groov, optonews, PACs, I/O, mobile, IIoT, Data acquisition, OptoNews 2017-01-18

For this tech tip we go to a recent blog post that takes a good look at the basic tools you need if you're a technician, an electrician, or a maker.

From oscilloscope to pliers to power supplies, these are the tools we find essential.

Get suggestions on what quality you need, what features to look for, and where to buy them, new or used.

Topics: Electronics, Tips, optonews, OptoNews 2017-01-18

If you’ve been listening to all the hype around the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the Internet of Things, Industrie 4.0, or my favorite, the Industrial Internet of Things (pretty sure they’re all roughly the same thing), you’ve no doubt heard the term machine learning thrown around.

Topics: Internet of Things, IoT, IIoT, Industrial Internet of Things

In a previous blog post I wrote about the Internet of Things getting hacked. As the IIoT ramps up and we continue to connect more devices to networks, we increase our industrial assets' exposure to cyber attacks. And we all need to start thinking about cyber security first, not as an afterthought.

It's everyone's responsibility to plan for cyber security, starting when you first evaluate industrial assets for purchase. 

Here are five checklist items to think about before connecting any industrial device to a network. No, this is not an exhaustive list, but frankly I don't want take up that much of your time. (You're welcome!) This is good starting point, though.

Topics: Internet of Things, IoT, Security, IIoT, Industrial Internet of Things

The image below still cracks me up. The captions for each of the devices are hilarious.

But in truth, ransomware is a pretty scary subject, especially when you think of it in the context of industrial technology and applications. And there’ve been quite a few unnerving stories about ransomware hacks in industrial applications lately.

Topics: Internet of Things, Tips, IoT, IIoT, Industrial Internet of Things

That Is the Question.

RS-485 Woes

Whether you work in industrial automation, process control, machine design, or any other industrial application, at some point in time you’re going to run into an RS-485 network. And troubleshooting these networks can be an absolute nightmare.

Topics: Tips

What technician, engineer, or maker doesn’t like tools? Having the right tools for the job is essential in getting things done.

Few things are more satisfying than applying just the right tool to a specific problem to easily rectify the situation. Having a shop outfitted with the right tools and a good place to work makes fixing things and resolving problems that much easier.

Topics: Tips, I/O, Raspberry Pi