Security of smart manufacturing systems

A revolution in manufacturing systems is underway: substantial recent investment has been directed towards the development of smart manufacturing systems that are able to respond in real time to changes in customer demands, as well as the conditions in the supply chain and in the factory itself. Smart manufacturing is a key component of the broader thrust towards Industry 4.0, and relies on the creation of a bridge between digital and physical environments through Internet of Things (IoT) technologies, coupled with enhancements to those digital environments through greater use of cloud systems, data analytics and machine learning. Whilst these individual technologies have been in development for some time, their integration with industrial systems leads to new challenges as well as potential benefits. In this paper, we explore the challenges faced by those wishing to secure smart manufacturing systems. Lessons from history suggest that where an attempt has been made to retrofit security on systems for which the primary driver was the development of functionality, there are inevitable and costly breaches. Indeed, today's manufacturing systems have started to experience this over the past few years; however, the integration of complex smart manufacturing technologies massively increases the scope for attack from adversaries aiming at industrial espionage and sabotage. The potential outcome of these attacks ranges from economic damage and lost production, through injury and loss of life, to catastrophic nation-wide effects. In this paper, we discuss the security of existing industrial and manufacturing systems, existing vulnerabilities, potential future cyber-attacks, the weaknesses of existing measures, the levels of awareness and preparedness for future security challenges, and why security must play a key role underpinning the development of future smart manufacturing systems.