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Plant floors are growing more connected, and that increased connectivity is causing manufacturers to rethink how they manage internal and external access to technology. The more IT and OT converge, the greater the risk for ransomware and cyberattacks.
With companies relying more on remote access and collaboration, secure remote access (SRA) has become a foundational element of their overall cybersecurity plan.
But the reality is that businesses need more than the SRA platform itself. They need a fully managed solution from rapid deployment to ongoing maintenance and governance that also helps with compliance and up-to-date technology. With in-house resources often stretched thin, outsourcing the management of an SRA solution can reduce risk while reducing the burden on internal teams.
This post will highlight what managed secure remote access is, why it matters, and how it strengthens your overall security posture.
What is Secure Remote Access?
Secure remote access provides both a secure line of communication and an avenue for remote access to enable the active management of access to the controllers, applications and systems on your plant floor. Access is not just for employees; companies often collaborate with original equipment manufacturers (OEM) or system integrators (SI), who may also need to remotely connect to troubleshoot and manage that equipment. Thanks to secure remote access, they can respond more quickly to issues and provide better uptime and availability for their equipment.
Managed Secure Remote Access vs. Secure Remote Access
With a managed approach, SRA policies, roles, and access permissions are applied consistently to both internal employees and contractors and are properly maintained to improve overall security. As personnel or business requirements change, re-aligning access with job function is key.
While some manufacturers are on top of their secure remote access policy and management, many are not. That’s understandable, it’s complicated. After all, you may have several OEM and SI partners needing access to parts of the environment, in addition to your own employees. Depending on what industry you’re in, you may have additional considerations within your larger cybersecurity plans.
The Challenge of Secure Remote Access
Implementing remote access comes with benefits and risks. Human error can result in unplanned downtime, safety, and environmental risks. While remote access enables virtual troubleshooting and monitoring that would otherwise be expensive and time-consuming, it also increases the potential for mistakes.
For example, it’s not difficult for an off-site vendor or on-site manager to accidentally download a program to the wrong PLC, which can result in incorrect functioning, downtime, production loss, and additional costs.
How Managed Secure Remote Access Addresses Challenges in SRA
Selecting the right SRA platform is part of the solution to enable role-based access and to help make sure that the right individuals have access to specific applications and devices. A managed solution enforces access, reviews activity, and has the means to swiftly remove unnecessary access, which is critical in a fast-changing environment. Managed SRA adds value by combining expert oversight with streamlined access governance to reduce risk and administration overhead. Organizations gain consistent policy enforcement and rapid response capabilities without overloading internal resources.
Controlling Virtual Traffic with Managed Secure Remote Access
With a managed SRA program, you can manage the policy and procedures, control who has access to what, maintain secure communications, and conduct audits and traceability of service.
A managed SRA program confirms visibility is centralized, is regularly reviewed, and action is taken when needed. Program administrators need the flexibility to quickly investigate incidents and act without relying on manual processes.
This gives SRA program administrators the power to proactively control the virtual traffic on their plant floors and provides value by providing timely issue resolution and reducing unplanned downtime. In operations, time is money. Secure remote access can help protect your bottom line by highlighting where modifications to the production environment can be made, allowing operations to run more efficiently and enable data-driven decisions.
People, Policy, and Procedures
To integrate cybersecurity as part of workplace culture, businesses need to focus on three things: People, policy, and procedures.
People
This includes everyone who is involved in the use and management of secure remote access, including third-party security providers, OEMs, and system integrators who have users with access, site staff and managers, and the corporate governance team.
These teams are key to making policies and procedures work. With the right education and training, they will help you create a culture of security in the workplace that will help decrease vulnerabilities and risk.
Policy
This guiding principle is where you start and define how secure remote access will be managed. It should outline who needs access, to what, and why. It should address whether there’s one process or multiple, whether access is centralized or spread out, and whether this is active or passive management.
Other questions can include:
- Are there other policies that need to be taken into consideration when developing this one, such as the overall security profile?
- If you already have a policy for physical security, which might include badge access and rules about who is allowed where, how does that extend to or interconnect with the remote community?
- Also consider what your policy needs in regard to traceability capabilities, plans to review logs, as well as audit results.
Don’t forget to test your own system to look for holes and improvements.
Procedures
When documented and put into place, procedures provide great value as playbooks that anyone should be able to understand and follow.
Procedures bring it full circle and help ensure that:
- Proper communication continues with those involved
- Plant floors maintain consistency through any workforce turnover
- A culture of security is part of the conversation
Managed solutions bring together people, policy, and procedures, adding an additional administrative layer to ensure compliance with the SRA program.
Managed Secure Remote Access: Customized for Your Needs
The bottom line for manufacturers: If you're not actively managing secure remote access to your plant floor, then you’re exposing your assets. Every day, those risks become more serious.
Whether you’re starting from scratch or looking to improve your current secure remote access policy and procedures, SecureOT managed services can help. Our team of OT cybersecurity professionals rapidly deploy SRA solutions while managing the technology and program to reduce burden on your internal team.
We can also provide solutions to help you deal with the industrial skills gap—whether that means maximizing the impact of your current staff by leveraging their skills remotely or outsourcing a remote monitoring and administration capability to our team of engineers.
Discover how Rockwell Automation can strengthen operational resiliency through managed secure remote access.
Published December 3, 2019
