How to Improve Cybersecurity for Industrial Panel PCs and HMI Systems

Connected HMI systems improve monitoring and maintenance, but they also create paths between machines, operators and business networks. Cybersecurity should therefore be part of the panel PC specification and deployment plan.

Start with an asset and connection inventory

Document every panel PC, operating system, application, Ethernet connection, serial device, wireless interface, USB port and remote-support method. A system cannot be protected if the team does not know what is connected or who is responsible for it.

Separate operational and business networks

Production devices should not automatically share unrestricted access with office systems or the public internet. Use properly configured firewalls, VLANs or dedicated network interfaces to separate machine traffic, supervisory systems and external services. Dual LAN ports can support physical separation, but the final security depends on network design and configuration.

Control users and privileges

Create named accounts where practical, remove unused accounts and avoid sharing administrator credentials. Operators should have only the permissions needed for daily work. Administrative access, software installation and configuration changes should be limited and logged.

Plan updates instead of applying them blindly

Unpatched software creates risk, but an uncontrolled update can interrupt production. Maintain an inventory of operating-system and application versions, test important updates on a representative system and define a maintenance window. Record a rollback method before changing a production HMI.

Protect remote maintenance

Remote access should be disabled when it is not required. When it is required, use an approved secure gateway or VPN, multi-factor authentication where supported, time-limited access and logging. Do not expose remote desktop services directly to the internet.

Reduce removable-media risk

Unused USB ports and wireless interfaces can be disabled through the operating system, firmware or physical controls. If USB media is needed for recipes or maintenance, define approved devices and a scanning procedure.

Back up and recover

Keep validated backups of the system image, HMI project, device configuration and production data. Test restoration before an incident occurs. Store at least one recovery copy separately from the production network.

Hardware questions to include in the RFQ

• Which operating systems and security features are required?
• Are TPM, dual LAN, removable storage or port-control options needed?
• How will remote support be performed?
• How long must the configuration remain available?
• Who owns image maintenance and recovery testing?

For a configured platform, review our factory configuration capabilities or send the network and software requirements with your inquiry.