OT Cybersecurity Matters More Than Ever
According to the SANS 2024 ICS/OT Cybersecurity Report, 83% of Operational Technology (OT) leaders experienced at least one security breach in the past three years—a stark reminder of the growing risks facing critical systems. For industries like manufacturing and energy, these challenges are compounded by hybrid workforces, expanded attack surfaces, stricter compliance demands, and the complexities of IT-OT integration.
The recent breach at American Water Works in October 2024 exemplifies these risks. When customer portals were taken offline to safeguard sensitive data, the disruption extended far beyond temporary inconvenience. Essential services—water access, billing systems, and real-time updates—were abruptly unavailable. The cascading vulnerabilities of interconnected systems came into sharp focus as public trust eroded and supply chains were disrupted.
More importantly, the incident served as a wake-up call. Reactive cybersecurity measures are no longer sufficient to address increasingly sophisticated attacks. Cybercriminals are exploiting weaknesses at the intersections of IT and OT systems—gaps that were once considered secure. These breaches are pushing boardrooms to shift their focus from “how do we respond?” to “how do we stay ahead?”
Looking Ahead to 2025: Emerging Challenges
Looking ahead to 2025, the stakes are higher than ever. Attackers are zeroing in on hybrid work setups, leveraging vulnerabilities in IT-OT connections, and testing the resilience of organizations grappling with workforce shortages and the cautious adoption of AI and cloud technologies. Staying ahead requires a proactive approach: anticipate threats, address vulnerabilities, and act decisively to prevent risks from escalating into full-blown crises.
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Drawing on insights from the SANS 2024 ICS/OT Cybersecurity Report and quotes from our OT security experts, we’ll tackle pressing questions: How can industries secure hybrid workforces? What role will AI and cloud technologies play? By addressing these challenges, organizations build stronger defenses and develop the resilience needed to protect their future.
Trend 1: Hybrid Work and Expanded Attack Surfaces
The shift to hybrid work has brought flexibility and convenience, but it has also introduced new security challenges for OT environments. Remote access and personal devices have significantly expanded the attack surface, making OT systems more vulnerable than ever. According to the SANS 2024 ICS/OT Cybersecurity Report, 26% of organizations still lack adequate network monitoring, leaving critical gaps in their ability to detect threats.
For industries reliant on OT, a single weak link can have catastrophic consequences. A compromised device or an unsecured remote connection isn’t merely a data breach—it can halt production lines or disrupt critical infrastructure. Attackers are increasingly exploiting vulnerabilities where IT and OT systems intersect, turning this gap into a major concern for organizations.
To address these risks, businesses are adopting tools tailored to the complexities of OT environments. Endpoint detection systems, designed for OT’s legacy and diverse systems, are enabling teams to identify and mitigate vulnerabilities faster.
Stricter Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policies are also cutting off common access points that attackers exploit. Encouragingly, the SANS report highlights that 75% of organizations now use multifactor authentication (MFA) to secure remote access, a crucial step forward.
Security Operations Centers (SOCs) are evolving to improve IT-OT collaboration. Unified SOCs, which allow teams to share insights and coordinate responses, show promise in enhancing threat detection and response. However, the report notes that only 30% of organizations have fully integrated IT and OT SOCs, highlighting the need for continued investment in this area.
As hybrid work expands, security strategies must evolve to keep pace. Safeguarding OT systems requires more than patching IT vulnerabilities—it demands a comprehensive approach that prioritizes visibility, early detection, and collaboration between IT and OT teams.
Trend 2: Compliance as a Driver for Cybersecurity Maturity
Compliance has come a long way—it’s no longer just a box to check. These days, it’s a key driver of cybersecurity maturity. With increasingly sophisticated threats, businesses are shifting to a proactive mindset, using global standards like NIST and ISA/IEC 62443 to guide their security strategies. And this isn’t just about following the rules. It’s about building defenses that work and give companies an edge.
But falling short of compliance is a costly mistake. Regulatory fines, lawsuits, and reputational damage add up fast. Imagine losing a multimillion-dollar deal because your business wasn’t seen as a safe partner. That’s the reality for companies that don’t prioritize compliance—it’s not just risky, it’s bad for business.
Compliance is most effective when it drives organizations to implement smarter, more proactive practices. Routine risk assessments, open incident reporting, and robust vulnerability management have moved from being optional to being essential. The truth is that compliance succeeds only when leaders fully support it. If executives don’t treat it seriously, it becomes just another document in a drawer. When leadership gets behind it, it becomes part of the culture—and that’s when real change happens.
Looking ahead, compliance is set to play an even more significant role. Businesses won’t just meet the basics; they’ll use compliance to stand out.
Trend 3: Accelerated IT-OT Convergence
IT and OT systems are coming together in ways we couldn’t have imagined a few years ago. By blending IT’s ability to handle data with OT’s focus on operations, companies are finding ways to work smarter, faster, and more efficiently. But there’s a catch: this growing integration creates new cybersecurity headaches. When these two systems merge, vulnerabilities that were never an issue for OT are suddenly on the radar—and attackers are taking notice.
The problem is that IT vulnerabilities can spill into OT environments. Phishing emails might seem like an IT problem, but without clear boundaries, they could lead to serious disruptions on the shop floor. Imagine a production line grinding to a halt because an attacker jumped from IT systems into OT. The risks are very real, and they’re getting harder to ignore.
So what are companies doing about it? Many are doubling down on network segmentation—keeping IT and OT separate while letting them collaborate where it matters. Others are setting up hybrid security operations centers (SOCs) that monitor both systems. These SOCs aren’t just catching threats earlier and helping teams understand how IT and OT systems impact one another.
According to the SANS 2024 survey, this integrated approach is already making a difference. In 2025, IT-OT convergence will only accelerate, as will the need for more innovative solutions. Real-time monitoring tools allow teams to catch issues early, stopping them before they cause significant disruptions. Hybrid SOCs are gaining traction as a practical solution, helping businesses stay flexible and maintain smooth operations even under pressure.
Watch on Demand:
Bridging the Divide: Bringing IT Security Into OT
OT security environments are unique, and IT teams need specialized approaches to safeguard these systems without disrupting operations. This on-demand webinar with former Verve Industrial CEO John Livingston reveals how to adapt proven IT security practices for adequate OT security. Discover the crucial differences between IT and OT security, learn how to safely integrate best practices, and understand why a dedicated platform is essential for success.
Trend 4: AI and Automation in Threat Detection
AI is slowly making its way into ICS/OT security, but it’s got a long road ahead. Only about 10% of ICS/OT environments currently use AI tools. That’s a small number, but the interest is growing. Companies are testing AI to catch unusual network activity or predict when a vulnerability might become a serious issue.
Here’s the tricky part: getting AI to work in these systems isn’t simple. Many security teams don’t have the expertise to run these tools, and when AI systems aren’t tuned properly, they can flood teams with alerts that don’t matter or miss the real threats altogether. For industries where a few minutes of downtime mean millions lost, it’s no wonder some are hesitant.
Still, the potential for AI is hard to ignore. Some tools could warn about weak spots days before they’re exploited. Others might launch a response the second an attack begins, reducing the time it takes to stop a breach. These aren’t just theoretical ideas—this is where the industry is heading. And it’s not just about faster responses. AI could take over tedious, repetitive monitoring tasks, letting security teams focus on the big stuff.
By 2025, more companies will likely test AI solutions, especially in hybrid setups where AI works alongside human analysts. Full automation might still be years off, but the groundwork being laid now could change how industries defend their systems in the near future.
Trend 5: Workforce Challenges and Solutions
The ICS/OT cybersecurity field has a big problem—it doesn’t have enough skilled workers to meet the demand. With threats growing daily, companies need experts who know both IT and OT systems inside and out. But here’s the catch: there aren’t enough of them, and finding people with the right mix of skills is no easy task.
On top of that, most of the current workforce is new to the field. Over half of ICS professionals have been at it for less than five years. That’s a lot of people without deep experience or mentors to guide them. And let’s be honest—ICS/OT cybersecurity isn’t something you learn on the fly. It takes a mix of technical expertise and a solid understanding of industrial systems, which makes hiring even more challenging.
So, what’s the fix? Companies are ramping up training programs to build skills from the ground up. Some are partnering with universities to create a steady stream of qualified candidates. Others pair junior employees with seasoned pros to share knowledge on the job. It’s not a quick solution, but it’s a start.
The more significant challenge might be keeping skilled workers once they’re trained. Better pay, career growth, and even remote work options are becoming standard ways to keep talent from jumping ship. By 2025, we’ll likely see workforce development and retention move to the top of the priority list because, let’s face it, all the tech in the world won’t matter without the right people running the show.
Trend 6: Cloud Adoption with Caution
Cloud technology is making strides in ICS/OT environments, offering new ways to handle monitoring, disaster recovery, and data analysis. For instance, some companies use the cloud to process telemetry data from industrial equipment in real-time. This allows them to spot potential issues before they snowball into major disruptions. That’s a big win. But adoption, especially in critical industries like energy, hasn’t been as quick as expected.
Why the hesitation? Security and compliance are the most significant sticking points. Handing sensitive data to third-party providers feels risky when uptime and safety are non-negotiable. And then there’s the headache of conflicting regulations. Businesses want clarity on how and where data can be stored before they dive in. These concerns are hard to overlook for sectors like energy, where every second counts.
Even so, it’s not all doom and gloom. The cloud offers scalability, cost-efficiency, and easier management of large data sets. Take telemetry analysis, for example. The SANS report shows more companies using cloud platforms to catch anomalies before snowballing into costly problems. That’s progress.
Cloud adoption in ICS/OT is likely to grow—but with caution. Enhanced security measures like zero-trust frameworks are already easing some concerns. More explicit regulations will also help organizations feel more confident. By 2025, the cloud won’t replace traditional systems, but it’ll play a more significant role in shaping cybersecurity strategies.
Navigating the Evolution of OT Cybersecurity in a Transformative Era
OT cybersecurity is pivotal, with emerging trends reshaping how organizations secure their critical systems. These shifts highlight the evolving complexities and opportunities in safeguarding industrial environments, from hybrid workforces and IT-OT convergence to the cautious embrace of AI and cloud technologies. Integrating compliance as a strategic driver and workforce development as a priority further emphasizes that cybersecurity is not just a technical challenge—it’s an organizational one.
As threats grow more sophisticated, staying ahead means being proactive. Aligning with global standards like NIST and ISA/IEC 62443, investing in cutting-edge technologies for threat detection and mitigation, and fostering a skilled workforce are no longer optional—they’re essential. At the same time, organizations must approach innovation thoughtfully, balancing adoption with robust risk management strategies.
The road to a resilient OT cybersecurity posture requires continuous improvement and a holistic approach. By addressing these challenges head-on, organizations can defend against today’s threats and build the flexibility and strength needed to adapt to tomorrow’s. With the groundwork laid in 2024, the year 2025 promises to be a transformative period for OT security. The time to act is now—because protecting critical systems isn’t just about technology; it’s about securing the future.
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