Schneider Electric announces managed security services for OT environments

August 03, 2023

Schneider Electric, a vendor of digital transformation of energy management and industrial automation solutions, launched Tuesday a Managed Security Services (MSS) offering to help customers in OT (operational technology) environments address increased cyber risks associated with the demand for remote access and connectivity technologies. These services can also be used to help combat the growing threat landscape in complex IT and OT environments.

Powered by Schneider Electric’s global Cybersecurity Connected Service Hub (CCSH), the new offering provides proven technologies as flexible services to monitor cyber threats and proactively respond on behalf of customers. Few companies, especially those in the OT space, have specialized cybersecurity resources or expertise in-house.

“Managed Security Services will help our customers implement cybersecurity industry-leading practices, proactively address risk, and align to regulatory requirements, giving them the ability to focus on their core operations,” commented Jay Abdallah, vice president of cybersecurity solutions and services at Schneider Electric, said in a media statement. “As part of our wide range of solutions to make organizations run more efficiently, this new cybersecurity offering is continuously evolving, helping to protect our customers against new cyber threats that can, and will, arise.”

Schneider Electric identified that with the manufacturing industry reporting the highest share of cyberattacks in 2022, business owners increasingly recognize the need for innovative cybersecurity solutions to help minimize downtime, loss of intellectual property, and other disruption caused by system vulnerabilities.

As the stack of cybersecurity tools in ICS (industrial control system) environments grows, and the pool of ICS cybersecurity and process expertise shrinks, MSS can be used to help combat this growing threat landscape in complex IT and OT environments. The MSS takes a more proactive approach to cybersecurity. In addition to implementing core cybersecurity controls such as firewalls and virus protection, the MSS involves active monitoring and response, identifying and mitigating potential security incidents before they impact processes and cause operational disruptions.

As a vendor-agnostic solution, MSS fits into an organization’s existing IT/OT infrastructure, scaling to their budget and maturity. Backed by advanced machine learning capabilities and trend analysis, MSS continuously optimizes processes and addresses real-time threats. The services include 24/7/365 support through Schneider Electric’s CCSH, with a global engineering and support team available around the clock.

The MSS offering integrates security monitoring and remediation support, defending digital infrastructures across business types and industries. It also monitors known risks and protects networks, systems, and data across IT, OT, and cloud environments – each of which has specific protocols and attack vectors. The new service can help customers to reduce the risk of emerging threats and sophisticated attacks that these unique technical and operational environments face.