When most people think about cyber security, they probably conjure up thoughts of someone locked away in a dark room, wearing the same grey hoodie for months. Staring at a screen for days at a time looking for just the right network packet to tell them where and how to attack. But that's not always how hacking is done.

Topics: Process control, PACs, Networking, Security

Most people relate the term blockchain to an Internet currency or peer-to-peer payment system called Bitcoin.

But there’s way more value to blockchain technology than just a payment system.

And it just might help us solve a lot of problems related to industrial cyber security, particularly in Industrial Internet of Things applications.

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

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

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

• Think about how much computers have changed in the last 30 years.
• Think about the quantity of data that enterprise data centers (EDCs) process today.
• And think about how facility management priorities have changed to meet rising energy costs.

Now imagine what needs to be done to update a 30-year-old EDC.

Topics: Energy management, Case studies, Videos, optonews, PACs, Building management, Security, REST API, RESTful server, REST, OptoNews 2016-12-14

And It’s Going to Happen Again.

Last week the Internet experienced the largest cyber attack in history. Many popular websites went offline for the better part of a day as three waves of cyber attacks hit the DNS infrastructure company DynDNS.

But how could an attack on a single infrastructure company wreak such havoc across the entire Internet?

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

Are you thinking about how you could use data from some of your SNAP PACs in databases, other applications, even the Internet of Things (IoT)?

If so, you'll be pretty excited about the upcoming release of SNAP PAC firmware, R9.5. 

Topics: Process control, Discrete control, Internet of Things, Updates, Remote monitoring, IoT, optonews, PACs, Firmware, Security, OptoNews 2016-06-22

Say you own a 30-year-old enterprise data center in the Arizona desert, and you're starting to have some problems:

• Aging HVAC and mechanical systems are increasingly inefficient in the hot climate.
• Security systems are no longer adequate.

Topics: Energy management, Case studies, optonews, PACs, Integrators, I/O, Building management, Security, OptoNews 2016-05-25

Here's your invitation to a comprehensive automation conference you won't want to miss, May 24-25 in Chicago, Illinois: The Automation Conference.

Topics: Process control, Discrete control, Internet of Things, IoT, optonews, Events & conferences, Security, OptoNews 2016-05-11