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Manufacturing & industrial

OT and IT security for manufacturing — built for the factory floor, not the office network

Manufacturing operations depend on OT systems — SCADA, PLCs, DCS, industrial sensors — that were designed for availability and reliability, not cybersecurity. As these systems converge with corporate IT networks, they inherit IT-era threats without IT-era defences. Caveo delivers OT security, IT/OT boundary protection, and 24/7 SOC monitoring specifically for industrial environments — without disrupting production operations.

OT Security specialist IEC 62443 aligned Non-disruptive to production ISO 27001:2022 certified
OT/IT SECURITY TOPOLOGY — MANUFACTURING MONITORED ENTERPRISE IT (LEVEL 45) ERP / MES Integrated — Secure Corporate LAN Monitored — Active Email / Cloud DLP — Enforced SOC COVERAGE 24/7 Active monitoring IT / OT DEMILITARISED ZONE — Caveo-managed boundary OT SUPERVISORY (LEVEL 3) Historian Read-only access SCADA Server Patched Q3 HMI Systems Access controlled OT RISK SCORE LOW IEC 62443 aligned OT CONTROL (LEVEL 12) — Air-gap enforced PLCs 22 units — OK RTUs 8 units — OK Field Devices Sensors — Actuators Safety Systems SIS — Isolated IT: Monitored DMZ: Enforced OT L3: Supervised OT L1-2: Air-gapped
OT risk score
Low
Assets monitored
Active
IT/OT boundary
Enforced
SOC coverage
24/7
The challenge

Three risks every manufacturing CISO and plant head is managing right now

OT security failures in manufacturing are not theoretical. Ransomware that encrypts a SCADA server stops a production line. An unsecured remote access path into a PLC network is an open door for destructive attacks. The challenge is addressing these risks without disrupting operations that run 24 hours a day.

IT/OT convergence creating direct attack paths to production systems

The push for operational efficiency — remote monitoring, ERP-to-SCADA integration, predictive maintenance platforms — is creating direct network connectivity between corporate IT and OT control systems. Without a properly designed and enforced IT/OT boundary, a phishing email that compromises a corporate workstation can become an entry point to a SCADA server or PLC network. The convergence benefits are real; so is the risk if the boundary is not managed.

Legacy OT systems that cannot be patched without shutting down production

Most OT environments run systems that are 1020 years old, run legacy operating systems (Windows XP, Windows Server 2003), and cannot be patched without a planned maintenance window — which may be scheduled months out. These systems are known to threat actors and carry public CVEs. The security programme must compensate for the unpatched status through network controls, monitoring, and compensating controls — not just a patching schedule that production operations cannot support.

Third-party vendor and remote access as the most likely initial access vector

OEM vendors, maintenance contractors, and system integrators routinely require remote access to OT systems for support, updates, and troubleshooting. This access is often provided through unmanaged VPNs, shared credentials, and without time-limited or monitored sessions. Third-party and supply chain access is now the most common initial access vector in OT-targeted attacks — and the one most frequently unaddressed by manufacturing security programmes.

What we deliver

Six security outcomes for manufacturing and industrial operations

Security outcomes are delivered without requiring production downtime — all assessment, monitoring, and control implementation is designed around the operational constraints of the plant.

Enforced IT/OT boundary

A defined, designed, and technically enforced boundary between IT and OT networks — with next-generation firewall controls, traffic inspection at the IT/OT DMZ, unidirectional data diodes where appropriate, and monitoring of all cross-boundary traffic. The boundary is tested under realistic conditions, not just documented.

OT asset inventory and risk baseline

A complete, accurate inventory of OT assets — PLCs, RTUs, HMIs, SCADA servers, sensors, industrial switches — with firmware versions, known CVEs, network connectivity, and criticality classification. Most manufacturing environments do not have a current, accurate OT asset inventory. This is the foundation of every other security control.

OT-aware 24/7 SOC monitoring

Security monitoring that understands industrial protocols — Modbus, DNP3, Profinet, EtherNet/IP — and is calibrated to detect anomalies in OT environments without generating false positives from normal operational traffic. Monitoring without OT protocol awareness produces either alert blindness or constant false positives. Caveo's SOC is trained for industrial environments.

Controlled third-party and vendor access

A managed remote access programme for OT vendors and maintenance contractors — with time-limited sessions, just-in-time access provisioning, session recording, and termination controls. Replaces unmanaged shared credentials and always-on VPNs with a controlled, auditable access model that does not compromise operational flexibility.

IEC 62443 alignment and compliance evidence

Security controls designed and documented against IEC 62443 — the international standard for industrial cybersecurity — providing the compliance evidence needed for insurance underwriting, customer audits, and regulatory requirements in regulated manufacturing sectors (pharma, food safety, automotive).

OT-specific incident response capability

Incident response procedures written for the manufacturing environment — not standard IT runbooks applied to OT. Procedures define escalation paths that include production management, plant heads, and OEM contacts alongside IT and security teams. Tested through tabletop exercises that simulate realistic OT attack scenarios.

Relevant services

Services applied to manufacturing and industrial environments

Regulatory & standards alignment

Frameworks applicable to manufacturing cybersecurity

IEC 62443

Industrial automation and control system security

The international standard for OT/ICS cybersecurity. Caveo designs manufacturing security programmes aligned to IEC 62443 zone and conduit models, security levels, and IACS component requirements.

CERT-In

India cybersecurity incident reporting

CERT-In mandates for incident reporting within 6 hours, log retention, and vulnerability disclosure apply to manufacturing organisations operating in India — including those with OT environments.

ISO 27001

Information security management

ISO 27001:2022 provides the overarching ISMS framework — covering people, processes, and technology controls across both IT and OT environments in manufacturing operations.

NIST CSF / SP 800-82

OT security guidance for industrial environments

NIST SP 800-82 provides OT-specific security guidance adopted internationally. NIST CSF is used for overall cybersecurity programme structure across manufacturing enterprise and plant environments.

IEC
62443-aligned OT security programme design
14+
Years securing industrial and manufacturing operations
Non-
Disruptive deployment — no production downtime required
24/7
SOC monitoring with OT protocol awareness
ISO
27001:2022 certified — same controls we deliver, we operate
Why Caveo

OT security experience that comes from the plant floor, not just the policy document

Most cybersecurity providers understand IT security well and OT security inadequately. A security control that works on a corporate laptop can damage a PLC. A vulnerability scanner running against an OT network can crash a process historian. Caveo's OT practice is built around operational continuity first.

OT security delivered without disrupting production

Every assessment, monitoring deployment, and control implementation is designed around the operational constraints of the plant. We do not run intrusive scans against live OT systems. We deploy passive monitoring. We schedule maintenance window activities with your operations team. Your production schedule is treated as a hard constraint, not an obstacle.

Industrial protocol expertise — Modbus, DNP3, Profinet, EtherNet/IP

OT-aware SOC monitoring requires understanding the protocols that OT devices speak. Caveo's SOC team is trained on industrial protocols and can distinguish between normal operational traffic patterns and anomalous behaviour that indicates reconnaissance, lateral movement, or a compromised device — without flagging normal production activity as alerts.

Delivery teams in India and Malaysia — serving manufacturing across both regions

Manufacturing customers in Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, and other industrial states in India, and in Selangor, Johor, and Penang in Malaysia, are served by local teams that understand the operational environment, local regulatory requirements, and the OEM and vendor ecosystem relevant to their plant technology.

IEC 62443 and ISO 27001:2022 — the credentials manufacturing audits require

Customer audits, insurance underwriters, and export compliance requirements increasingly ask manufacturers to demonstrate the cybersecurity posture of their OT environment. Caveo's IEC 62443-aligned programme design and ISO 27001:2022 certified operations provide the documented, auditable evidence base that those processes require.

Common questions

Manufacturing OT security — what plant heads and CISOs ask

Can you assess our OT environment without shutting down production?

Yes. Our OT security assessments use passive monitoring techniques — traffic capture and protocol analysis — rather than active scanning. Passive assessment does not send probes to OT devices and cannot cause operational disruption. For components that require active testing (IT-side systems, remote access infrastructure), we schedule those during planned maintenance windows in coordination with your operations team. We have completed OT assessments in continuous-process manufacturing environments, pharmaceutical plants, and automotive facilities — all without production downtime.

Our OT systems are old and cannot be patched — what can we do?

Compensating controls. When a legacy OT system cannot be patched, the security programme shifts to network isolation, traffic whitelisting, and monitoring. Specifically: network segmentation to isolate the unpatched system from broader network access; strict allowlisting of which devices can communicate with it and on which protocols; passive monitoring to detect unexpected traffic patterns or new connections; and removal of unnecessary network interfaces. These controls do not require touching the OT system itself — they are implemented at the network layer around it. This is standard practice for legacy OT environments and does not require replacement of production equipment.

We have multiple plant locations — can you cover all of them?

Yes. Caveo's SOC monitoring model is network-connected and scales across multiple plant locations — each site is onboarded to the monitoring platform independently, with site-specific detection rules and escalation contacts. On-site work — assessments, hardware deployment — is delivered by our India (Chennai) and Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur) teams, with travel to plant locations across both countries. For international sites, we assess requirements on a per-engagement basis.

How do you manage security for OEM vendors who need remote access to our OT systems?

We design and implement a managed remote access programme specifically for OT vendor access. This covers: a privileged access management (PAM) solution that brokers all vendor sessions through an audited gateway rather than direct VPN access; just-in-time access provisioning — access is granted for a defined window, then automatically revoked; session recording so all vendor activity in the OT environment is logged and reviewable; and a vendor onboarding process that verifies the identity of vendor personnel before access is granted. This model is more secure than shared VPN credentials and more operationally practical than manual access management.

What does an IEC 62443 assessment involve and how long does it take?

An IEC 62443 assessment evaluates the security of your industrial automation and control system (IACS) against the zones, conduits, and security levels defined in the standard. For a single manufacturing facility, the assessment typically involves: 23 days of on-site passive traffic monitoring and system interviews; review of existing network topology, firewall rules, and access control documentation; assessment of vendor access controls and remote access infrastructure; and production of a gap analysis report with IEC 62443-referenced findings and a prioritised remediation roadmap. Total engagement duration is typically 46 weeks from kickoff to report delivery, depending on facility complexity.

Start with an OT assessment

Secure your plant — without stopping it

Talk to our OT security team about your manufacturing environment. We will propose a non-disruptive assessment approach tailored to your plant's operational schedule.