Automotive

“The automotive manufacturing industry heavily depends on Operational Technology (OT) to ensure high efficiency and minimal production downtime. As digitization and automation advance, they also introduce elevated cybersecurity risks.”

Automotive Cyber Security Challenges

Industry 4.0 brings automation, process improvements and efficiency—but also exposes critical OT systems to new vulnerabilities and attack vectors.

Historically, OT was isolated—proprietary protocols and custom hardware limited exposure. Today, convergence with mainstream IT removes air gaps, making inadequate security measures a critical risk.

ICS/OT malware such as Industroyer, Triton and Incontroller demonstrate attackers’ growing sophistication and have caused serious incidents.

Situational Awareness

Perception (What’s happening?)

An expanding attack surface driven by convergence, connectivity, geographic and organizational complexity—compounded by limited OT risk management—increases exposure.

Comprehension (Why does it matter?)

Connecting OT to IoT and IT elevates vulnerabilities once insignificant, making them prime targets.
Attacks on OT can disrupt paint shops, stamping lines and robotics, causing quality defects, production delays or recalls.
Cybercriminals can steal IP—process designs or proprietary configurations—and sell it, inflicting reputational and financial harm.

Automotive Risk Management

For organizations with limited OT risk programs, we recommend a holistic, two-phase approach:

Phase 1 – Risk Identification & Prioritization
Identify critical OT functions (e.g. paint shops, stamping lines, robotic cells) and assess cyber impact. Leverage custodians and engineers to map realistic attack paths—covering architecture, access controls, third-party scope, supply chain and physical security.

Phase 2 – OT Cybersecurity Framework (OT-CSF)
Establish a formal OT-CSF with policies, procedures and playbooks aligned to:

ISA/IEC 62443
NIST CSF
NERC-CIP
ISO/IEC 27001/27002/27019

At minimum, include:

Formal governance model (RACI roles)
End-to-end operating model
Regulatory compliance mapping
Asset inventory
Network architecture documentation
Incident response plan
Workforce training & awareness
Procedural controls (access management, change control, backups)
Basic performance monitoring & reporting

As OT maturity grows, supplement with:

Internal assurance & self-assessments
External audits
Third-party/supplier cyber clauses
Network & threat monitoring solutions
Asset monitoring & vulnerability detection
Privileged Access Management (PAM)

Finally, ensure budgets, in-house skills, supplier support and governance to sustain your OT program—reducing vulnerabilities and building resilience.