Preventing Cyberattacks on Manufacturing

Preventing cyberattacks on manufacturing isn’t just an IT concern anymore, it’s a business survival strategy. If you work in manufacturing and think hackers are only targeting banks or big tech companies, think again.

Over the past few years, there has been a major shift. Manufacturing has become one of the top targets for cybercriminals, and it’s easy to understand why. Your infrastructure is critical. You’re the backbone of everything from defense to healthcare to consumer goods. Unfortunately, that makes you a high-value target.

Why Hackers are Focusing on Manufacturing

I always start here with clients: you have to know why you’re being targeted in order to protect yourself. There are five big reasons hackers love going after manufacturing companies:

Critical Infrastructure

If your plant goes down, it doesn’t just impact your company. It affects the entire supply chain, and sometimes across industries.

Supply Chain Vulnerabilities

Manufacturers are interconnected. One weak link can bring down an entire production chain.

Aging Equipment

Legacy systems often weren’t built with today’s cybersecurity risks in mind.

Intellectual Property (IP)

Hackers want your proprietary blueprints, formulas, and processes.

Financial Incentive

If production halts, manufacturers lose money fast. That’s why ransomware is so effective here because companies often pay just to get back online.

Where We See the Most Risk in Manufacturing Environments

When I assess a manufacturing company’s cybersecurity posture, the same vulnerabilities show up again and again:

• Outdated, unpatched software: Especially in legacy SCADA or PLC systems.
• Poor network segmentation: If a hacker gets in through one entry point, they shouldn’t be able to access your whole environment.
• Default credentials: You’d be shocked how many systems still use “admin/admin” as their username and password.
• Inconsistent backups: If your backups are old or incomplete, ransomware can cripple you.
• Lack of employee training: A phishing email is still the number one entry point for attackers.

One real-world example that is often referenced is Maersk. Back in 2017, they were hit by the NotPetya attack, a wiper malware that destroyed data across their entire global network. Their network wasn’t segmented, and they weren’t patching systems. This resulted in $300 million in damages, massive downtime, and a full-blown supply chain crisis.

Preventing cyberattacks on manufacturing comes down to addressing these exact types of gaps.

The Business Impact of a Cyberattack

Let’s be clear, it’s not just your IT systems at risk. A breach can impact production, revenue, and even employee safety. I’ve seen everything from operational slowdowns and missed delivery deadlines to equipment malfunctions and safety system failures. You could lose trust with partners, customers, and employees, and that’s not easy to rebuild.

Downtime isn’t just inconvenient. In manufacturing, it’s expensive. If you don’t have a solid backup and recovery strategy, every hour offline is a hit to your bottom line.

What You Can Do Today to Protect Your Business

The good news? Preventing cyberattacks on manufacturing doesn’t require a million-dollar budget; however, it does take intentional planning and action. Here are some best practices I recommend for every manufacturer:

Run a cybersecurity risk assessment

Start with something like a Cyber Score to see where you stand.

Turn on multi-factor authentication (MA)

Use it on every system that supports it.

Ditch weak passwords

Store strong, unique passwords in an encrypted password manager.

Keep systems updated

Patch your software and firmware regularly.

Train your team

Make cybersecurity part of company culture, not just an IT checkbox.

Build an incident response plan

Don’t wait for a crisis to figure out what you’ll do.

I also recommend gamifying employee training. Some of my clients run monthly drawings. Everyone who completes their 8-minute cybersecurity training by a certain date is entered to win a gift card or a steak dinner. It’s fun, it works, and it gets your team engaged.

Budgeting: Are You Underspending on Cybersecurity?

One of the biggest surprises for many of my clients is how underfunded their IT and cybersecurity efforts are. Industry standards recommend spending 5–7% of top-line revenue on IT. Most manufacturers I talk to are under 2%.

When I share that stat, the conversation around budgets changes fast. Let’s face it, if you’re not willing to invest in protecting your business, you’re essentially betting against your own survival.

This isn’t about buying flashy new software. It’s about putting the right tools and practices in place to prevent downtime, protect IP, and keep your operations running smoothly.

Where to Start if You’re Just Getting Serious About Cybersecurity

If all of this feels overwhelming, don’t worry, you don’t have to tackle it all at once.

Start by educating yourself and your team. Understand the risks. Know what tools are out there. Then, find a trusted partner who can help you take practical steps toward a stronger cybersecurity posture.

Preventing cyberattacks on manufacturing starts with awareness, then builds with execution. The steps aren’t complicated, but they are necessary.

Update your hardware and software because using outdated IT systems can cost your business more money than think. Use MFA wherever you can and get your passwords out of Chrome and into a proper password manager.

Final Thoughts

If you take one thing away from this post, let it be this: cyberattacks on manufacturing aren’t a question of if, they’re a question of when. But that doesn’t mean you have to be a victim.

Preventing cyberattacks on manufacturing is completely within your control. With the right strategy, tools, and team, you can protect your operations, your people, and your future.

Let’s make cybersecurity part of how we run our businesses and not just something we talk about after a breach.

Want to know where your vulnerabilities are? Let’s start with a Cyber Score. It’s a quick, powerful way to assess your risk and start building a strategy that works for your business. Contact All in IT for a free consultation on your cybersecurity risk.