While manufacturers recognize that adopting smart technology is critical to their company’s future success, experts point out that prioritizing cybersecurity is critical as well. Joe Wetzel, department chair of Information Technology at FVTC, was recently interviewed about this topic for an article in the October 2022 issue of Insight on Business.

“The manufacturing industry is built around distribution and production so security isn’t really something that gets thought about,” Joe says. “But manufacturers don’t even know what ports are open on their devices. Some of the software is run on older operating systems that aren’t being patched. For threat actors, it’s all low-hanging fruit.”

When manufacturers are vulnerable to cyberattacks, it puts things like equipment at risk, as well as potentially disrupting supply chains and even intellectual property. But putting basic protections in place can be a foreign concept for many companies.

“We are getting better but it’s hard,” Joe says. “The big thing for manufacturing companies right now is to identify what is your most valuable data, is it being secured properly, do the right people have access to it, and is it being backed up appropriately.”

How do manufacturers protect themselves? Read Joe’s advice in Insight on Business: Eye on Cyber