Your Cybersecurity Risks Grow
Randy Wolken, President & CEO

Manufacturers are increasingly under cyber attack. As we begin a new year, we look back at a growing record for manufacturing cyber costs. Cyber attacks and breaches continue to rise with no end in sight while organizations continue to invest in technology at a record pace. According to Check Point, cyber attacks have increased dramatically. Organizations struggle to avoid becoming a cyber attack statistic from supply chain breaches to ransomware.

This trend is global. Nearly half of Britain’s manufacturers were victims of cybercrime during 2022, according to research published by Make UK, the manufacturers’ organization and intelligent security software and services provider, BlackBerry. This study reveals that manufacturers face many cybersecurity risks, ranging from simple employee error to complex targeted attacks. The top three cybersecurity vulnerabilities were identified as maintaining legacy IT (45%), a lack of cyber skills within the company (38%), and providing access to third parties for monitoring and maintenance (33%). In addition, the research found that production stoppages were the most common result of a cyber attack (65%), with reputation damage ranking second (43%). Companies further revealed that new customers now want reassurance on details of the cybersecurity in place before signing contracts.

MACNY is committed to helping members prepare and respond to this increasing threat. Our team assists members so they can find services to augment their efforts. To further support members, we will hold our third annual cybersecurity event where experts and members come together to address ongoing threats and actions needed now, given the growing threat. Sign up for our April 5th Cybersecurity Summit by clicking here, or by visiting macny.org/events. For more information on how MACNY can help you, please get in touch with us at [email protected].

It is clear that the manufacturing industry will continue to be a key target for cyber threats, which will only grow over the coming years. The key to all cybersecurity is a committed company effort to be secure, vigilant, and resilient. Companies must take a measured, risk-based approach to what is secured and how to secure it. Vigilance involves monitoring systems, applications, people, and the outside environment to detect incidents more effectively. Finally, companies must be resilient by preparing for incidents and decreasing their business impact.