36 | Plant & Works Engineering www.pwemag.co.uk October/November 2025 Special Focus Industrial Security Rapid adoption of digital transformation and connectivity while operating legacy systems is creating a complex and often precarious security environment. Industrial cyber security can no longer be treated as an optional add-on. It has become a core business enabler, critical to resilience, safety, and competitiveness. Recent data from Statista shows that manufacturers experience the highest rate of cyber-attacks when compared to other industries, and that cyber threats are constantly growing in sophistication and frequency. As keynote speaker at Cyber SecureOT 2025, I took the opportunity to set the tone for the day with the controversial statement: “digital transformation is putting your business at risk”. This talk led to some valuable conversations with industry leaders on the latest trends in cyber resilience. The risk of cyber threats should not be taken as a reason to slow the pace of digitalisation, far from it. Instead, when future proofing their operations, organisations should also make cyber security a priority for almost every job role. That’s because employees can influence cyber security at every stage of the digital transformation journey from strategy and planning to implementation and adaption. With that in mind, there are three key trends that are currently changing how OT systems are protected: 1. Growing complexity Innovative business practices and technologies are exposing industrial enterprises to new threats and fundamentally changing how cyber security should be approached. Breaking down information silos, converging the worlds of OT and IT and connecting previously isolated systems is increasing productivity levels and future proofing operations. However, they extend the attack surface. These innovations are also exposing industrial enterprises to new threats and fundamentally changing how cybersecurity should be approached. In a statement issued alongside its latest annual review, the National Cyber SecurityCentre (NCSC) noted a rise in hostile activity in the country’s cyberspace: “ransomware attacks continue to pose the most immediate and disruptive threat to our critical national infrastructure” like energy, water, transportation, health, and telecoms. The full NCSC Annual Review 2024 also notes that manufacturing is among the top sectors reporting ransomware activity in the last year, with a view to target industrial control systems. Kroll’s global State of Cyber Defence 2024 report backs this up by identifying manufacturing as one of the most targeted industries by ransomware – and despite being more advanced in threat detection than other sectors, 25% of manufacturers responded that they only employ basic security capabilities. It is understandable that a sector leading the way in modernisation is at the most risk, and to combat this the whole supply chain must assess risk, invest in training and keep processes up to date in order to increase resilience. To build a culture of cyber security, industrial businesses can draw on guidance from a dedicated training partner. Upskilling teams will help them to understand how their roles fit together to strengthen incident response. It will also improve visibility of cybersecurity across operations to move industry a step closer to ITlevel security in OT environments. 2. Industrial AI During Cyber SecureOT Deon van Aardt, Marketing Manager at SolutionsPT, shared insight on industrial AI and how it is changing the game for almost every application. Industrial AI goes beyond deploying smart algorithms to create AI-supported digital twins, generative design co-pilots, and autonomous control systems. These rely on vast amounts of data and connectivity, making AI both a target and a tool when it comes to protecting OT environments. Human-supervised AI can analyse patterns in Cyber security is no longer an optional safeguard Cyber security is no longer an optional safeguard for industry, it is a cornerstone of operational success which has become immensely more complex in the wake of digital transformation. Lee Carter Industrial Cyber Security Product Manager, SolutionsPT, reports.
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