A new study of over 500 technology executives worldwide has revealed that manufacturers face losses up to $2 million per cyber-attack. Many of these breaches have recently been fueled by cyberattacks targeting OT systems which originated in IT systems. Specifically, 75% of reported incidents were classified as ‘Cyber-to-Physical’ security attacks, where IT breaches spread to OT systems. 80% of manufacturers reported an uptick in security incidents across their IT/OT environments.

Yet, despite this growing threat, only 45% of companies feel adequately prepared to address IT/OT security challenges. This lack of preparation is reflected in the financial impact of cyber-attacks, with affected manufacturers facing downtime costs between $200,000 and $2 million per attack, depending on the severity of the incident.

As the connectivity between IT and OT systems grows, manufacturers are finding that traditional cybersecurity measures, such as air gapping, are no longer sufficient. Also, with IT and OT becoming more interconnected, security responsibilities are increasingly moving from engineers to CISOs. Manufacturers are struggling to manage this integration due to a shortage of skilled professionals who understand both IT and OT security. As a result, almost 51% of the manufacturers surveyed are planning to outsource support to third-party providers in the next 18 months. Read more about this story on our LinkedIn page