July 22, 2025
If you're the kind of leader who wakes
up at 2:00 a.m. thinking about system uptime, this post is for you. Because
when your OT (Operational Technology) network starts lagging, breaking, or
getting targeted, your peace of mind is usually the first casualty.
Most CFOs don't need to know the nuts and
bolts of PLCs or SCADA systems—but they do need to understand what keeps them
safe and stable. And more importantly, what makes them fail.
According to the SANS Institute, nearly
60% of OT-related downtime was attributed to preventable issues, including
patching delays, expired endpoint protection, and unmanaged remote access.
CFO questions that lead to better OT
readiness:
- Do we have an asset inventory
that includes OT devices and firmware?
- Are OT systems segmented from
IT traffic and external internet?
- How often do we patch or update
firmware on plant-floor systems?
- What's our detection time for
anomalies on the OT network?
- Who owns OT incident
response—and when was the last drill?
One Ohio shop identified a rogue
vendor-installed router in their plant that had been left on and unmanaged for
nearly a year. Once removed and segmented properly, their network speeds and
system reliability jumped—and the CFO finally stopped needing IT translations
every board meeting.
"If
you want to reduce stress, increase visibility." — Theresa
Payton, former White House CIO
Another firm ignored routine patching on
its machine network for six months. A known vulnerability in an old HMI panel
opened a backdoor that went unnoticed until it was flagged during a routine
audit—costing them a full network revalidation.
"Cybersecurity
isn't just about threats—it's about readiness." — Ann
Johnson, Microsoft VP of Security
5 OT red flags that steal your sleep:
- Shared logins across shop floor
HMIs or control stations
- OT and IT teams not speaking
regularly (or at all)
- No audit trail for access or
firmware updates
- OT systems on expired antivirus
or no endpoint monitoring
- Vendor laptops plugging
directly into plant systems without control
It's not just about your SCADA—it's
about your sanity. Because OT may be "operational"—but when it goes down,
finance is the one left answering.
