A recent technical brief from Schneider Electric notes that cybersecurity threats and attacks have become a common occurrence and pose a global problem, that data breaches and other cyber crime cost companies billions each year worldwide, and that "the damage to brand reputation can be incalculable." Since hackers look for weakly defended systems to attack, the white paper outlines 5 cybersecurity best practices to mitigate system vulnerabilities in intelligent building management systems.

The technical brief describes how intelligent building management systems (iBMS) that were once proprietary and stand-alone are now integrated with other systems. "Today’s intelligent building management systems are networked with IT data centers, remote access servers, and utilities through open protocols," states the paper's executive summary. "While these iBMS provide significant benefits, they also open companies up to greater cybersecurity vulnerabilities."

The technical paper discusses practices and procedures that will lead to more secure iBMS in the field. Although many steps may sound familiar and commonsense, additional rationale is offered for why these steps are so important. Briefly stated, the 5 best practices include such measures as: effective password management; securing open ports and other access points; software upgrades; user management; and vulnerability plans.

Making improvements in these 5 areas will pay great dividends and lead to better-hardened, resilient systems that are less vulnerable to attack, asserts Schneider Electric.

View/Download the white paper.