Keeping Industrial Revolution 4.0’s Treasures Hidden

The growing use of Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) worldwide is in the process of turning the concept of smart factories into reality. The phenomenon has been described by observers as the fourth industrial revolution, or Industry 4.0 for short. Big things are expected. Analysts at Gartner expect manufacturing to account for 57% of total IoT spending in 2017, while total enterprise IoT investments will reach $964 billion. Industry 4.0 promises to combine digital technologies with all-pervasive internet connectivity to produce valuable data. Companies then mine, analyze and convert the information into a wealth of insights. The knowledge will then be used to boost factory productivity, increase supply chain efficiency and make cost savings. As always, new trends bring fresh challenges. Connecting industrial machinery to the outside world can lead to new security risks. Deployment of virtual private networks (VPNs) can help reduce such risks significantly, ensuring that Industry 4.0’s data treasures stay hidden from unwelcome observers.

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Looking into the crystal ball

In 2017, some of the worst data incidents of recent years have occurred. Whether Equifax, Uber or Maersk, organizations have had to admit, sometimes too late, that their customers’ personal data have been stolen. To some extent, companies' tactics to cover up the incidents have seemed almost as criminal as the data theft itself. All industry insiders and security software companies that dare to make forecasts for the coming year agree that ransomware in particular seems to be developing into a threat that companies cannot currently handle.

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Could Net Neutrality reversal spell open season for connected car data?

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has voted to overturn Net Neutrality. The decision gives internet service providers (ISPs) and telecom companies the right to prioritize services according to customers’ ability to pay and to sell customer data to third parties. One industry likely to feel the effect of this is the automotive sector. Connected […]

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Four Common Myths about VPNs

A Virtual Private Network (VPN) is a useful tool that encrypts data before it passes across the public Internet and then decrypts it when it reaches its destination. Rather like shutters on the windows of a house, it shields what goes on inside even though the outside can be seen by everyone in the street. The process, often referred to as tunneling, is particularly useful for businesses whose workers have to use the Internet in public places like coffee shops or airports. It is also helpful for those who want to keep confidential customer information or intellectual property safe from the prying eyes of hackers and spies. In 2017, the U.S. Trump administration overturned regulations preventing ISPs from making money from users’ browser data. At the same time in the UK, the Investigatory Powers Act served to increased government surveillance of Internet activity in response to a heightened threat of terrorism. Both led to a surge in interest in VPNs. A VPN is an established technology that has traditionally been seen as the province of technical specialists. Perhaps because of this, and in spite of VPN services becoming easier to deploy, a number of enduring myths persist.

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Regulation for IIoT is on its way – but is it enough?

Two of the biggest technology trends today - IoT (Internet of Things) and M2M (machine-to-machine) communications - are changing the business world beyond all recognition.

Companies of all sizes, from major manufacturers to small-and medium-sized services companies from all sectors, now have a golden opportunity to derive new revenue streams from managing and servicing their customers’ equipment remotely.

According to leading industry analysts, the IoT market already accounts for hundreds of billions of dollars in 2017 – a figure that is set to be in the trillions by 2021. But new research reveals IoT is also a major headache for enterprise everywhere because of limited information and inadequate security measures. Legislators in the U.S. and in Europe are working to bring in standards compelling designers to do more to make their devices secure. But the signs are that even then they may be limited in scope. The good news at least is that remote connections can be reliably secured so that M2M communications remains private and confidential using virtual private networks (VPNs).

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Importance of a Secure Defense for the World Cup in Russia

Major sporting events are always popular with businesses. The 2018 World Cup tournament in Russia promises to be no exception. The corporate sponsorship opportunities on offer are an ideal way to entertain influential decision-makers of important customers and prospects. Set against this are recent reports of Russia’s tough new internet censorship laws - set to come into effect from November 1, 2017. The move is a security concern for Western company executives anxious that employees and VIPs visiting the event may be unable to prevent sensitive information being exposed to Russia’s extensive surveillance network. The good news is that the new regulation only blocks access to web services and online information that are outlawed already and does not extend to personal or legitimate business Virtual Private Network (VPN) use. With a corporate VPN and some simple guidelines it should be possible for visiting executives to conduct business over the Internet securely during World Cup 2018.

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Authentication on PCs: Recommendations from Security Experts

Authentication is an important part of working on a computer, whether logging on, opening encrypted data or using web services like PayPal. Usernames and passwords still play an important role, even if many experts advise against using passwords as the only authentication method. Even approaches to passwords have changed over time. Until recently, experts recommended choosing complex passwords using special characters, numbers and uppercase and lowercase letters. However, many professionals now consider that complex passwords are inconvenient for users, especially if they must be changed frequently. Phrases such as a quote from a book or a sentence which is relevant to the log-in context are more meaningful for users. Such phases can easily reach more than 20 characters and are nevertheless much easier to remember than complex, eight-letter combinations of letters and numbers.

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The risk of attack is getting closer – mobile devices in focus

Smartphones are part of everyday life, either for private or professional use. However, while many users have taken basic measures to protect their desktop PC or laptop, this is not the case for mobile devices. A study by Consumerreports.org showed tha...

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The EU General Data Protection Regulation

Data protection is considered important, the Federal Data Protection Act is well established and German companies really should be absolute experts in data protection by now. However, a quick reality check shows that data protection is not quite as adv...

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Strategies for Managing Large-Scale VPN Deployments

Large organizations today are experiencing a rapid evolution in technology that is challenging traditional security systems and infrastructures. Corporate networks that once only had to support the connectivity of desk-bound workstations and a small nu...

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When plan B needs a plan C

Just a few days ago, news began circulating on the internet of a strange problem with Cisco routers which was easy to identify as it caused complete failure. Shortly afterwards, Cisco issued a warning for specific products which may still be functioning normally but could fail after approximately 18 months of operation without warning. Meanwhile, a list of affected devices has now been published online. But that’s far from the full story.

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Careful Connections are Key to Mitigating Cyber Attacks on IIoT Systems

Energy plants and factories have always been prime targets for delivering a devastating setback and psychological blow against an enemy. Today, successful attacks against critical infrastructure can be launched in cyberspace. In 2015, a cyber-attack on a Ukrainian power station caused a loss of power affecting 225,000 customers and the world took note. In the U.S., the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has raised concerns over the growing number of cyber attacks on industrial control networks. In response, they recently published guidelines to “provide a strategic focus on security and enhance the trust framework that underpins the IoT ecosystem.” The document calls for a combined approach. Among the measures discussed are considered connectivity and defense in depth. Managed Virtual Private Network (VPN) connections and two-factor authentication can help secure critical connections to give IIoT data traffic the in-depth protection it needs.

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The IoT gateway next door

Internet of things products are small, networked and unfortunately have almost always little or no security. Sometimes this is down to a lack of willingness by the manufacturer but it is also partly due to the nature of the product – small and light also means that these devices have few resources for complex security features such as encryption and packet inspection. This leads to vulnerabilities, numerous attack vectors and ultimately to a bot device which can be abused by almost anyone. Following the latest large-scale attacks that primarily use IoT devices as a digital army there is a loud demand from those who want more legislation and governments to get involved. In a hearing before the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the US House of Representatives, the security guru Bruce Schneier stated that "catastrophic risks" would arise through the proliferation of insecure technology on the Internet.

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Protecting virtual worlds of data in motion

In 2017, 69% of all applications will reside in the cloud according to Cisco. As we rely increasingly on benefits made possible by further advances in Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and mobile devices, it’s a statistic that will continue to rise. The challenge for enterprises today is how to protect data as it streams constantly between physical mobile/IIoT devices to virtual repositories in the cloud and back again. Until corporate IT departments fully manage and stay on top of security, large breaches will continue to make the headlines. Statistics revealed in the Ponemon Institute 2016 Global Cloud Data Security Study show there is still much to do. The study found that nearly half (49%) of cloud services in the enterprise are outside corporate IT’s domain, while around 47% of corporate data stored in cloud environments are not managed by the IT department.

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BSI drafts Internet of Things security recommendations

At last, influential policymakers are slowly becoming aware of the damages unsecured IoT devices can cause. Recent attacks on high profile targets, exploiting cameras and routers, have attracted a lot of attention. Some of the issues will not likely be...

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The dark side of remote maintenance

Another first for 2016: at the weekend, another unprecedented event occurred which left significant numbers of Deutsche Telekom customers with difficulties accessing the internet or no internet access at all. As is now widely known, the outage was caused by a malicious attack – which was not entirely successful ­­− rather than a technical fault. The attackers attempted to exploit the TR-069 protocol used on customer routers and add them to a bot net. 900,000 users are reported to have been affected.

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Is Mobile Security Broken?

The way we work has changed. Our laptops, tablets and smartphones let us do our job from wherever we want – at the office, at home or even while on-the-move. We can also freely chat and collaborate with colleagues, customers or suppliers one-to-one or in groups using an array of cloud-based productivity apps. When it comes to mobile, the conventional security model is broken. Traditional detection and software patching techniques simply cannot keep pace. In its place, arguably one of the most reliable ways to keep sensitive proprietary data safe is mobile VPN.

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