Interstates enhances cybersecurity with OT Network Controller: A study in zero-trust network protection

The prefabrication shop at system integrator Interstates in Iowa has manufacturing requirements that used to make its regular enterprise network vulnerable and made it difficult for staffers to do their jobs. Interstates’ operators, technicians and IT personnel often didn’t know when other parties were in the system, and vendors could gain remote access and even view the activities of different vendors.

To improve its cybersecurity, Interstates worked with Veracity Industrial Networks to develop its OT Network Controller software, which manages a switch capable of software-defined networking.

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Zero-trust and deny-by-default methods also are used to improve network visibility and security. The controller manages switches, microsegments network traffic, creates device-based firewalls on endpoints such as programmable logic controllers (PLCs) and human-machine interfaces (HMIs) and supports OT Ethernet-based protocols.

The prefab shop’s protection has been so successful, it’s being added to another facility in Nebraska.

Interstates’ Dave Smit shares cybersecurity suggestions in this article from partner publication, Control.