floor,” says ARC’s Moore. “You look at whether the risk is high or low, then you look at what you need to do to reduce those risks.”

So whether the potential for cyber attacks comes from terrorists, angry employees or hapless engineers, manufacturers are beginning to realize they’re at risk. The plant is connected by an IT network and that network can be accessed from the outside. As with most IT advancements, large manufacturers tend to be ahead of the game on security, with small to mid-size manufacturers most at risk.

See the sidebar that goes with this story: The Plant Floor Culture Gap