Concept: The image shows the connection between an IT network (with computer and data icons) and an OT network (with machine icons), with symbols of threats or vulnerabilities between them.
🔒 Cybersecurity: Deep Dive into Zero Trust in OT Networks
The concept of Zero Trust is a key security principle that is gaining traction in the world of Operational Technology (OT), particularly in factories and industrial infrastructure. Implementing Zero Trust in OT networks is essential to protect against threats arising from breaches of IT systems.
💡 Why OT networks need Zero Trust
OT networks that control machines, industrial control systems (ICS), and supervisory control systems (SCADA) are often designed primarily for availability and safety, not cybersecurity. This makes them highly vulnerable to attacks escaping from the IT side for the following reasons:
1. IT/OT Convergence
Network Cross-Platform Risk: Historically, OT networks have been air-gapped , but today's data and performance demands require IT and OT networks to be more interconnected for analytics and operations, allowing hackers to use IT networks as a front door to gain access to less secure OT networks.
Outdated software: Many OT devices are decades old and run operating systems or firmware that can't be updated or protected with antivirus software, making them easy targets when connected to the outside world.
2. OT Network Vulnerabilities
No lateralization: Many OT networks are flat, meaning that if an attacker breaks into one device, they can move to almost any other device (lateral movement) without further inspection.
Focus on continuous operation: Authentication and access control in OT are often less stringent than in IT due to latency constraints and fears that stricter controls will disrupt production processes.
🛡️ Zero Trust Strategy for OT Threat Defense
The Zero Trust principle is “Do not trust any device or user, both inside and outside the network,” with strict verification of every access to a resource (Verify Explicitly). Its implementation in OT must take into account the vulnerability of the system:
1. Network segmentation (Microsegmentation)
Principle: Divide the OT network into functional subzones (e.g. pump control zone, packaging zone).
Advantage: If a hacker can penetrate one zone, they will not be able to automatically access other zones (Limit Lateral Movement ), thus limiting the attack to a very narrow range.
How to: Use industrial-grade firewalls or Zero Trust enforcement devices to tightly control traffic between zones.
2. Least Privilege Access
Principle: Users and devices should be granted access to only the resources they need to complete their tasks.
Example: A technician maintaining a machine in Zone A should not have access to the SCADA server in Zone B, and OT devices should only be allowed to communicate with the associated OT devices, not with the public Internet.
3. Continuous Verification
Principle: Authenticate devices and users at all times during connection, not just at the beginning.
In the OT context: The system checks whether the OT device's behavior deviates from its normal pattern (e.g., a pump starts sending data to an external IP address with which it has never communicated before). If an abnormality is detected, the system must immediately alert and disconnect.
Implementing Zero Trust in OT networks is an investment that allows factories and infrastructure to truly prevent physical damage and maintain production continuity , rather than waiting to deal with the impact of attacks that cross over from IT systems.
| Safety technology | Zero Trust (Trust Nothing), Cybersecurity , Network Security, Microsegmentation, Access Control, Authentication |
| Industrial Network | OT Network (Operations Technology Network), IT/OT Convergence , Industrial Security, ICS (Industrial Control Systems), SCADA, Flat Network |
| Risk & Strategy | Lateral Movement, Risk Reduction, Threat Defense, Availability, Safety, Least Privilege Access, Continuous Verification |
| industry | Industrial Facilities, Manufacturing Security, Critical Infrastructure |
