--- title: Manufacturing & production canonical: https://www.secnostic.com/en/solutions/production language: en dateModified: 2026-08-23 alternate-de: https://www.secnostic.com/de/solutions/production --- # Manufacturing & production - URL: https://www.secnostic.com/en/solutions/production - Audience: OT transparency for manufacturing - Positioning: Manufacturing without blind spots secnostic shows which machines, controllers, HMIs, engineering systems, and suppliers a line really depends on. Your team finds incidents faster, plans maintenance more cleanly, and keeps cyber risk in check without slowing production down. **See what runs on the line, without touching it** On a live line, even looking is a risk. The sensor observes network traffic [passively](https://www.cisa.gov/resources-tools/resources/foundations-ot-cybersecurity-asset-inventory-guidance-owners-and-operators) and places every device in its [IEC 62443 zone](https://www.dke.de/de/arbeitsfelder/industry/iec-62443-cybersecurity-industrieautomatisierung) and Purdue level, because in OT [availability and safety](https://csrc.nist.gov/pubs/sp/800/82/r3/final) come before everything else. **Situation.** A line depends on machines, controllers, HMIs, engineering workstations, historian systems, IIoT gateways, and cloud connections. Without a shared OT view, dependencies, remote maintenance, and firmware states stay in the dark far too long. **Challenges** - unknown devices, shadow OT, and undocumented connections across the production network - outdated firmware on machines, controllers, HMIs, engineering systems, or IIoT components - communication between line, OT, IT, DMZ, cloud, and suppliers that nobody notices - fear of downtime, because patching, segmentation, and response always work against availability **Approach.** secnostic listens in passively, enriches the data in a controlled way, and places everything in an OT context. The result is a clear view of devices, lines, zones, communication paths, lifecycle, risks, and measures. **Outcomes** - faster root-cause work when a line stops - maintenance and patches planned by criticality, firmware, and EOL/EOS - less manual list work, because secnostic reconciles continuously - auditable proof for IEC 62443, NIS2, and customer requirements **What a blind spot on the shop floor costs** Unknown OT is attack surface, downtime risk, and audit gap all at once. - **Shadow OT and foreign devices**: Undocumented machines, integrator laptops, and IIoT gateways are often the first way into the production network. - **Firmware with no update path**: Controllers run past EOL/EOS, and a patch needs the machine builder's sign-off. - **A vulnerability with no context**: A vendor advisory helps little until someone knows which line and which PLC it actually affects. - **An IT tool on OT**: An active scan from IT can disturb a sensitive controller and stop the line. **Observe, understand, act** The setup is the same in every plant. The secnostic sensor observes network traffic passively and reports only what it sees. Active queries run only after approval. The inventory graph places every device in its line, zone, and Purdue level and links it to firmware, vulnerabilities, and owners. focusAlert takes the relevant finding to the right person with a traceable history, while the decision to patch or compensate stays with the asset owner. **In practice, four situations** What happens when something changes on the plant floor? Each situation as a concrete flow. - **A new device appears**: Notice: The sensor sees a previously unknown device on the production network without querying it actively.; Place it: The graph locates it by line, zone, and Purdue level, and proposes an owner.; Assess: Open ports, protocols, and known vulnerabilities are tied to production criticality.; Resolve: focusAlert hands the finding to OT and plant management, with a traceable history. - **A vulnerability lands**: Advisory: A vendor or CERT advisory arrives, often with no link to your own equipment.; Find the hits: The graph shows at once which PLCs, HMIs, and lines run the affected version.; Prioritize: Exposure, zone, and production impact decide between patching, segmenting, and compensating.; Decide: The action stays with the asset owner, with context instead of gut feeling. - **A supplier connects**: Access: An integrator or maintenance partner connects to a machine or over a remote path.; Make it visible: The conduit is recorded in the model with purpose, owner, and time window.; Observe: The sensor detects new devices or communication paths the access brings with it.; Keep a record: Activity and changes stay provable, even after the maintenance window. - **Plan a maintenance window**: Candidates: Due patches, EOL systems, and open actions are grouped by line.; Weigh: Availability, safety, and vendor sign-off are set against the security effect.; Bundle: Actions go into the next real maintenance window instead of disrupting one by one.; Prove: What was done, deferred, or compensated stays traceable for IEC 62443 and NIS2. **Deployment steps** 1. **Observe**: Sensors observe network traffic passively and with operational care; existing sources such as switches, firewalls, CMDBs, maintenance lists, or engineering tools add context. 2. **Map**: Assets are mapped to lines, cells, sites, Purdue levels, IEC 62443 zones, owners, and communication partners. 3. **Prioritize**: Vulnerabilities, vendor advisories, firmware states, EOL/EOS, and exposure are connected with production impact and maintenance windows. 4. **Respond**: Relevant events are routed to accountable people so containment, compensation, or maintenance can be coordinated traceably. 5. **Prove**: Measures, exceptions, owners, and audit questions stay connected to real assets, lines, and zones. **What becomes visible** - **Line and facility view**: Machines, controllers, HMIs, servers, IIoT components, and owners become visible by line, cell, and site. - **Communication and zones**: Allowed and observed connections between OT, IT, DMZ, cloud, remote access, and suppliers become distinguishable. - **Lifecycle and vulnerabilities**: Firmware, vendors, CVEs, advisories, EOL/EOS, patchability, and compensations are assessed in production context. - **Measures and evidence**: Risks, measures, owners, due dates, and evidence stay connected to real assets and production lines. **FAQ** - Q: Why is OT transparency operationally important in manufacturing? A: Production teams need to quickly see which line, machine, controller, connection, or remote-maintenance path is affected. An OT view reduces search time during incidents and makes maintenance, segmentation, and security measures easier to plan. - Q: How does secnostic avoid disrupting production during discovery? A: The entry point is passive-first. Sensors observe existing communication; active queries are used only in a controlled and approved way, so production, safety, and maintenance windows are respected. - Q: How does secnostic help with vulnerabilities and EOL/EOS? A: secnostic connects CVEs, vendor advisories, firmware, support status, exposure, and production criticality. Teams can see where patching makes sense and where segmentation, access restriction, or compensation is a better fit. - Q: Are IEC 62443, NIS2, and audits still covered? A: Yes. Zones, conduits, asset management, risk assessment, measure status, and ownership become traceable and exportable from operational work. **Sources** - [CISA OT asset inventory guidance](https://www.cisa.gov/resources-tools/resources/foundations-ot-cybersecurity-asset-inventory-guidance-owners-and-operators): Joint agency guidance published in August 2025 on building an OT asset inventory with taxonomy, data management, and lifecycle maintenance. - [CISA definitive OT architecture view](https://www.cisa.gov/resources-tools/resources/creating-and-maintaining-definitive-view-your-operational-technology-ot-architecture): CISA and international partner guidance on creating and maintaining a definitive view of operational technology architecture. - [NIST SP 800-82 Rev. 3](https://csrc.nist.gov/pubs/sp/800/82/r3/final): NIST guide to operational technology and industrial control system security. - [DKE IEC 62443](https://www.dke.de/de/arbeitsfelder/industry/iec-62443-cybersecurity-industrieautomatisierung): DKE overview of the IEC 62443 standard series for cybersecurity in industrial automation and control systems. - [EU NIS2 directive](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2022/2555): Consolidated text of EU Directive 2022/2555 (NIS2) on measures for a high common level of cybersecurity across the Union. - [IBM X-Force Threat Intelligence Index 2026](https://newsroom.ibm.com/2026-02-25-ibm-2026-x-force-threat-index-ai-driven-attacks-are-escalating-as-basic-security-gaps-leave-enterprises-exposed): IBM X-Force 2026 report on observed attack trends, affected industries, and security gaps. - [Dragos OT/ICS Year in Review 2026](https://www.dragos.com/resources/press-release/dragos-2026-year-in-review-new-ot-threats-ransomware): Dragos 2026 report on OT/ICS threats, ransomware, and industrial organizations. - [SANS State of ICS/OT Security 2025](https://www.sans.org/blog/sans-2025-state-ics-security-report-progress-pressure-path-resilience): SANS 2025 report on ICS/OT security posture, incidents, progress, and resilience needs. - [ENISA Threat Landscape 2025](https://www.enisa.europa.eu/publications/enisa-threat-landscape-2025): ENISA report on the European threat landscape and observed attack trends.