Cybersecurity in the manufacturing sector becomes more and more important as cyber-attacks increase in both frequency and severity. Human Robot collaborative systems heavily rely on the information technology to implement fenceless HRC environments. Cybersecurity threats in HRC systems are especially important as the impact of an attack can range from data theft, production, equipment or product damage to human injuries. The SHAREWORK project combines some of the latest hardware with a set of software modules that apply some of the latest technological developments for Human Robot Collaborative systems following the SHAREWORK software architecture.
In addition, the SHAREWORK project has developed the SHAREWORK data security, a well-rounded data security policy accompanied by a software module that aims to increase the data security in a Human Robot Collaborative system, deployed in the manufacturing sector. The developed SHAREWORK data security policy includes strategies, policies and technologies that can be customized and applied to increase the security level. The developed approach has been applied in the automotive industry for the prevention, detection, response and recovery from Cybersecurity incidents.
The SHAREWORK Data Security Policy follows a “Prevention, Detection & Response” approach, that addresses the needs of a Human Robot Collaborative environment.
Prevention
Succesfully preventing potential security incidents is paramount for the cybersecurity of a system. Prevention measures aim to reduce potential security incidents by reducing the security weaknesses or elements that could be exploited.
The Defense in Depth and the Principle of Least Privilege are two important concepts and strategies that are used in the SHAREWORK Data Security.
Following, a Defense in Depth strategy the SHAREWORK data security policy includes a set of hardening measures in different levels that address related security threats in multiple levels. Rather than establishing a single line of defense, the “Defense in Depth” approach adopted asks for multiple different measures that could stop or slow down a security attack even if some parts of the system are compromised. In particular hardening measures are applied in the used hardware, developed and used software, operating system, network and container levels.
At the same time, all user and system accounts follow the Principle of Least Principle. In particular, system and users accounts are restricted to the information and resources that are necessary for their purpose, reducing the impact of potential illegitimate access.
Detection
Detection mechanisms are responsible to identify and inform when a system has been compromised or misused. A single security incident can be part of a larger scale targeted attack. That’s why it’s critical to detect a security incident as soon as it occurs and, subsequently, mitigate and contain or reduce the impact of the attack.
Detecting security incidents or data breaches poses a challenge as high sensitivity to potential threats can sometimes incur a higher number of false alarms
The SHAREWORK data security offers detection functionality that can detect potential security incidents in both data in transit and data at arrest. The detection includes identifying unauthorized connections in the network or in the ROS system and integration with antivirus tools, such as the open-source Clam Antivirus. Finally, the SHAREWORK Data Security module is designed to be flexible and interoperable with other detection systems that may be already part of company’s infrastructure.
Response
The response phase covers the actions that an organization uses to respond to and manage a cyberattack. The SHAREWORK data security module offers incident response functionality that aims to reduce the damage caused by an attack and recover as quickly as possible and also includes logging functionality that helps the investigation of security incidents.
Investigation is an important component in order to learn from past incidents and better prepare for the future to prevent and manage similar incidents in the future. Since it is possible that an organization experiences a breach at some point in time, a well-developed and repeatable incident response plan is a good way to safeguard the system.
When a cybersecurity incident is detected the SHAREWORK data security system can trigger customized immediate action responses. For instance, stopping robot or equipment by contacting the related PLC or controllers is a measure that could be used to prevent further damage. Furthermore, it can notify and log the incident for future incidents.
The SHAREWORK data security system has developed multilevel notification mechanisms that informs operators in the shopfloor through both traditional audiovisual such as alarms and led lights, as well as more modern mechanisms using the SHAREWORK Human Machine Interface applications. The SHAREWORK data security system can notify other stakeholders also using email.
Senior Software Engineer – Technical Lead @ Netcompany-Intrasoft
Architecture, technical Lead, design, integration and development of distributed software systems. Experienced in applications for Robotics, Manufacturing, IoT, Simulation, Telecommunications and the Web. Diligently writing clean code since 2008.
