Nozomi Networks and Schneider Electric embed security sensor in RTUs

Nozomi Networks and Schneider Electric have announced a security sensor that runs embedded in Schneider Electric remote terminal units (RTUs). The Nozomi Arc embedded in Schneider SCADAPack 47xi Smart RTUs is designed to allow security and operations teams to gain visibility at the control device layer of their industrial automation equipment and field assets, as well as the ability to analyse and deter control-device-level threats and malicious user activity without impacting current resources or disrupting mission-critical networks.

“As cyberthreats to the world’s energy resources rise, we’re working with Nozomi Networks and our customers in critical infrastructure to double down on effective defences,” said Jay Abdallah, Vice President of Cybersecurity Solutions and Services at Schneider Electric. “Nozomi Arc Embedded in Schneider RTUs transforms remote terminal units into secure assets, giving operators the visibility they need to respond to threats before they can do harm.”

“We’re honoured to team with Schneider Electric to bring Arc Embedded to their RTUs,” said Nozomi Networks Co-founder and CPO Andrea Carcano. “For more than eight years, our partnership with Schneider has allowed us to collaborate to find better ways to protect energy management and automation processes around the world. This latest effort with Arc Embedded extends security to and through industrial control systems, down to the highly remote field assets they manage, which are often left unmonitored and at greater risk.”

By directly embedding Nozomi Arc Embedded into Schneider RTUs, security and operations teams gain visibility into important data from within RTUs, and the field assets controlled by those RTUs including:

• Updates to RTU endpoint status, including software and hardware inventory, vulnerability details, resource utilisation.
• Level 0 visibility as Arc Embedded extracts process variable data directly from the RTU, enabling unmatched visibility into physical processes and device state without requiring external polling protocols.
• Threat and anomaly detection, detecting malicious and suspicious operational actions, like USB or SD card connections/removals, time setting manipulation, changes to control logic and firmware, or mechanical manipulations.
   

Arc Embedded is available for Schneider SCADAPack 47xi Smart RTUs via a subscription-based model, available from Schneider Electric, Nozomi Networks, and Nozomi Networks channel partners.

Image credit: iStock.com/halbergman