The world is increasingly awash with cybersecurity incidents. In 2025, Americans alone lost over $20 billion in cybercrimes. Globally, cybersecurity incidents are becoming more common by the year, and attacks targeting civilian infrastructure have become a regular facet of warfare. Since the Maidan Revolution of 2014, Ukraine has been targeted by Russian hackers attempting to cripple their infrastructure, while Iranian hackers have infiltrated critical infrastructure across the United States amid the recent war.
Often, the specific target of these hacks is a niche part in a factory that, for example, controls circuit breakers. But why are these niche parts targeted, and what makes them uniquely vulnerable to cyberattacks? In short, the world’s physical infrastructure is built on technology that—while excellent for industrial automation, the tasks it solves—was not built for a world in which every device is connected to the internet.
Operational Technology (OT) is hardware and software that interacts with physical systems. A classic example of OT hardware is a programmable logic controller (PLC), a type of computer designed to automate industrial processes. PLCs were invented in the 1960s to replace more cumbersome forms of industrial automation that many automotive companies possessed at the time. They are a key component of any modern factory and make mass production possible.
