Why Manufacturing Can’t Copy-Paste IT Security Policies

Picture the scene: It’s 3AM, and your production line unexpectedly comes to a standstill.  

Hours earlier, an automated software patch – standard under your company’s IT security policy – rolled out across several critical systems, including a legacy human-machine interface (HMI) controlling part of the line.  

Trouble is, the patch wasn’t tested in the OT environment. And now, it’s triggered a tidal wave of cascading failures. 

The contractor who knows your equipment inside-out is ready to help but can’t connect remotely because your HMI doesn’t support the mandated VPN.  

Scenarios like this unfortunately aren’t rare glitches. They’re everyday occurrences in production environments, where uptime isn’t optional and safety always comes first. 

Yet too often, manufacturers have been handed IT security playbooks and told to simply ‘make it work.’ 

Spoiler: it doesn’t work. 

Manufacturers face a distinct set of challenges that traditional IT policies simply weren’t designed to resolve. Trying to apply IT-style access controls to OT is more than ineffective – it’s potentially dangerous. 

To ensure the security and availability of your manufacturing operations, it’s time to turn to tools that are purpose-built for the realities of the factory floor. 

Let’s explore why.

Securing People and Operations, Not Just Data 

In IT, security is all about protecting data. In OT, it’s about protecting both people and critical operations – where physical safety and uptime are every bit as important as securing information. 

A cyberattack on a manufacturing facility where cyber-physical systems are in operation isn’t just a compliance headache. It’s a direct threat to workers on the factory floor.

Manufacturing and other critical industries maintain a safety-first culture. Even small disruptions can create ripple effects across plants, supply chains, and lives. 

Security solutions must preserve – not endanger – operational safety.

Why IT Security Models Fall Short in OT Production Environments 

There are some hard-wired assumptions baked into IT security models: 

• “Everyone has cloud access.” 

• “Everyone can respond to security prompts 10 times a day without issue.” 

• “Everyone can reboot whenever necessary.” 

But none of these assumptions holds true for OT. 

First, manufacturing plants often operate with unreliable connectivity, strict air-gapping, or network isolation strategies – keeping critical systems offline to reduce attack surfaces and safeguard operations from external threats. 

Second, when efficiency and systems availability are the top priorities, juggling multi-factor authentication (MFA) tokens is not just an annoyance. Blanket IT policies that add friction and slow down access have the potential to turn a minor fault into a major operational failure – or worse, a safety incident.  

Imagine a production engineer trying to shut down an overheating system, but losing precious minutes to resolve an MFA prompt. In IT, those minutes cost frustration. In OT, they could cost millions. 

Another challenge that manufacturing brings to the table is decentralization. While IT environments are typically neat, tidy, and centralized, manufacturing is anything but. Every plant, facility, or production line can have its own unique systems, users, and workflows – and they don’t always play by the same rules.  

Securing OT means working with these realities, not against them.

The Catastrophic Cost of Manufacturing Downtime  

In a typical IT environment, a late-night system reboot is an inconvenience. In manufacturing? It has the potential to be a full-blown disaster. 

Manufacturing depends on a vast web of OT systems running around the clock. Even a few minutes of downtime can mean: 

• Spoiled ingredients on a food processing line 

• Days of catch-up work in an automotive plant 

• Massive revenue loss in pharmaceutical production 

The average cost of unplanned downtime in manufacturing is estimated at $260,000 per hour, rising to over $2.3 million per hour in the automotive industry. That’s a staggering $600 per second. 

Forced updates and reboots – both accepted IT practices – can create catastrophes in OT. Even short maintenance windows can have cascading effects, causing lost production and significant disruptions throughout the supply chain.  

Simply put, operators can’t afford delays when uptime – meaning revenue and safety – is at stake. 

Why Agentless Access Matters in Manufacturing 

Manufacturing environments are full of legacy devices, bespoke systems, and hardware from dozens of vendors. Some programmable logic controllers (PLCs) or HMIs might be decades old – and, critically, can’t support agents. 

Similarly, installing third-party software is often a contractual no-go with OEMs or else a major operational risk.  

Manufacturers also rely heavily on third-party contractors for remote diagnostics, maintenance, and other key tasks. Requiring every vendor to install an agent, configure a VPN, and jump through IT security hoops is both impractical and risky. Every extra hurdle slows response times and increases room for error. 

A secure access solution needs to fit manufacturing's reality: fast and simple. So third parties can get in, do what they need to do, and get out – without exposing your network to added risk. 

And it’s not only about speed – it’s about choosing the right tool for the job. Many OEM contracts still rely on insecure methods like basic video conferencing or remote desktop sharing solutions like TeamViewer. These tools often lack granular access controls or auditability, making them a weak link in your security chain. 

Choosing a dedicated, secure, and agentless remote access solution significantly reduces these risks, making third-party collaboration much safer. 

What Manufacturing Needs: Uptime-First Access Control 

The future of secure remote access for the manufacturing industry isn’t about squeezing OT systems into an IT-shaped box. 

It’s about delivering access controls that: 

• Offer always-on, agentless access that doesn’t compromise safety or uptime 

• Work natively and non-intrusively, without forcing end users to change how they operate 

• Adapt to decentralized, offline, on-prem, and legacy systems without ripping and replacing infrastructure 

Securing factory floors and other OT environments demands a different approach: one built for uptime, safety, and simplicity. 

The right secure remote access (SRA) solution won’t need overnight patching marathons, “just trust us with your data” handwaving, or cobbled-together fixes. Instead, it will provide secure, seamless remote access – tailored for manufacturing’s unique realities and priorities. 

The Bigger Picture: Writing a Secure Access Playbook for Manufacturing

Copying IT policies into manufacturing is like using superglue on a jet engine. It might stick – for a while. But eventually, something will give. And the fallout could be disastrous. 

Manufacturers shouldn’t have to compromise between security and uptime. And with the Cyolo PRO (Privileged Remote Operations) access solution, they don’t have to.  

Because comprehensive OT security isn’t achieved by copying what works for someone else. It’s accomplished only by understanding, adapting, and protecting what matters most.