Supply-chain vulnerabilities, aging infrastructure, patching difficulties and gaps in incident response demand urgent action to safeguard industrial operations, according to a report from TXOne Networks.
The report reveals heightened concerns over digital vulnerabilities potentially introduced in deployment of industrial control systems (ICS) such as smart sensors, edge-computing devices, asset-tracking solutions and remote-monitoring tools.
“Traditionally, cybersecurity strategies have focused on safeguarding IT (information technology) systems and their digital assets. However, as industries undergo continuous digitalisation, critical infrastructure is increasingly integrated into unified digital ecosystems, broadening the attack surface,” the report says.
Also, the report notes that intrinsic differences between OT and IT systems often render IT-centric security measures inadequate when applied to OT environments. With OT systems now deeply interconnected, the shortcomings of conventional IT protections have become glaringly evident, particularly in light of the safety, availability, and reliability characteristics of these systems.
The findings are based on a survey conducted jointly by TXOne Networks and Frost & Sullivan, covering input from 150 C-suite executives in large firms based in eight markets — the United States, Germany, Japan, Taiwan, France, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and South Korea.
Results showed that 94% of surveyed organisations reported being at risk of OT cyber incidents in the past year, while 98% experienced IT incidents affecting their OT environments.
While ransomware incidents decreased from 47% of respondents in 2023 to 28% in 2024, nation-state attackers on critical infrastructure were revealed to be a growing new concern.
Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs), vulnerabilities in supply-chain software and advanced malware such as Fuxnet and FrostyGoop are among the diverse threats documented in the report.
“As large enterprises strengthen their security posture, the focus of OT cybersecurity is expanding beyond visibility to include protection, advanced threat detection, and robust security governance,” said Terence Liu, CEO of TXOne Networks.
