The punch list of concerns for solution providers in protecting Operational Technology continues to change. This will mean new approaches and priorities as 2025 continues, according to experts and emerging data points.
Urgent warnings about these changes began a year ago, and now the impact is becoming more apparent.
Attacks with new geopolitical motivations, new methods for keeping OT devices and network surfaces protected, and the emergence of 5G and AI are among the top issues on the list, according to Richard Springer, senior director of marketing - OT Solutions at Fortinet.
“For OT, there’s no end in sight as far as new threats as cybercriminals continue to pivot toward unsecure and high-value targets,” he said in a recent blog post.
Changes to the threat landscape in OT will be front and center at Fortinet’s OT Security Summit at 11:30 a.m., March 12. The virtual summit will provide critical insights into protecting IT and OT systems , addressing the latest data and trends. (Registration information below).
Consider just a few of the trends that are now significantly impacting best practices.
As always, new geopolitical issues prompt urgent threats to OT security. Take, for example, attacks last year on satellite and manufacturing infrastructure and malevolent events based on developments in the Middle East.
As to networks themselves, new strategies for patching include a whole-network approach rather than device-at-a-time updates, given the range of devices, sunsetting support and firmware. This complexity can lead to security gaps.
Ransomware continues to be a concern, particularly in manufacturing.
And, while just at the very beginning of the generative AI (GenAI) age, the potential of GenAI to deploy for use in continual inspections, updates, monitoring, and more may give it a more significant role in OT security and protection as 2025 moves forward, as some like Springer predict.
Fortinet’s OT Security Summit will discuss many of these and other topics. Solution providers can find more information and register using this link.