NEWS


THE FUTURE OF AI IS NOW SAYS IFS


FS, the leading provider of Industrial AI software, showcased the next wave of AI innovation at Industrial X Unleashed, which took place in New York in November. The company shared its vision, demonstrated specific applications of IFS.ai in action within an industrial setting, as well as unveiled partnerships through applied customer examples.


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Opening the event, Mark Moffat, CEO of IFS said: “The opportunity to drive growth in our economy, as well as positively impact our society and planet using AI is now – but importantly, what will make a difference is applying AI in the industrial setting. The news headlines to date have been on the generic productivity benefits AI can provide to office-based workers, but IFS is uniquely positioned to deliver contextual and industry-specific AI to workers in the field. And that is where we will see the most impactful innovation and efficiency gains.”


IFS showcased partnerships with some of the fastest-growth AI companies looking for further expansion by applying their capabilities with IFS.ai to the industries that IFS serves. Examples from the following areas included: • Frontier AI Models: a


partnership with Anthropic saw IFS Nexus Black launch Resolve, powered by Claude, as the first of many new IFS solutions that puts industry-specific AI directly into the hands of frontline workers. Resolve enables customers to predict and prevent faults faster,


demonstrated through a real- world customer use case at distillers William Grant & Sons. • Physical AI and Robotics: a collaboration with Boston Dynamics was used to demonstrate how physical AI and robotics can leverage IFS’s industrial AI at customer Eversource. • Grid and Power: A


partnership with Siemens Grid Software was announced. For more information about Industrial X Unleashed, visit www.industrialX.ai.


LEARNING CYBER-RESILIENCE LESSONS IN MANUFACTURING


ollowing the recent incident at JLR, Daryl Flack, Partner at Avella Security, explores ways of minimising the impact of a cyber-attack in the manufacturing industry.


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The recent cyberattack on Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has sent shockwaves through the UK manufacturing sector. Production was forced to a halt across multiple plants, staff were left unable to work, and supply chains suffered serious disruption. For JLR, the incident was not just an IT problem; it was a full-blown operational crisis. And while the company acted decisively to shut down systems and contain the threat, the event underscores wider lessons for resilience in the sector. One of the most important lessons from JLR’s handling of this incident was the speed of its response. The company took the difficult step of shutting down production systems. While this caused short-term pain, it was a decisive containment measure that prevented further spread and potentially more catastrophic damage. In any cyber crisis, time is of the essence. Every hour of hesitation gives attackers more opportunity to exfiltrate data, move laterally across networks, and embed themselves deeper into critical infrastructure. JLR demonstrated how immediate containment can preserve long-term operational stability.


Manufacturers must take note. Effective response depends not only on technical safeguards but also on well-rehearsed incident response playbooks. These need to outline who makes the call, what systems can be sacrificed, and how communications with staff and suppliers are handled. Without such preparation, organisations risk paralysis when decisive action is most needed. The group linked to the JLR attack has previously claimed responsibility for breaches at other major UK organisations. This highlights how attackers are not only persistent but also increasingly focused on manufacturing and critical infrastructure. Why? Because operational technology (OT) environments are both attractive and vulnerable. Unlike IT systems, which have seen decades of investment in cyber defences, OT environments were often designed primarily for function rather than security. Industrial robots, assembly lines, and process controllers can often run legacy software, rely on proprietary protocols, and cannot easily be patched without halting production. The attack surface widens further as these systems are connected to IoT devices, remote monitoring tools, and IT networks. Add in the complexity of global supply chains, where third- party access is often required, and attackers are presented with multiple entry points or attack vectors. Manufacturers also hold sensitive intellectual property, from process designs to trade secrets, making them prime targets for ransomware, espionage, and supply chain compromise. In short, OT is becoming the battlefield of choice for cyber adversaries.


Perhaps the most serious impact of a cyberattack that affects OT, is the threat to operational continuity. When IT systems are compromised, the disruption is significant, but usually recoverable with


6 NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2025 | PROCESS & CONTROL


backups, redundancy, and recovery tools. When OT systems are hit however, the consequences ripple far beyond the factory floor.


At JLR, the production shutdown immediately stalled output, but the effects extended into logistics and distribution, supplier coordination, and customer trust.


This is why true resilience demands a holistic approach. Technical firewalls and endpoint protection are essential, but they are not enough. Manufacturers must embed resilience into the fabric of their operations by separating IT and OT environments, practicing joint drills between operational and security teams, and establishing continuity plans that assume disruption will occur at some point.


So how should manufacturers respond? There are three critical layers: technical safeguards, incident response preparedness, and governance. 1. Strengthen Technical Foundations Start with visibility. Create a full inventory of OT assets, and ensure patching and updates are applied where possible. Network segmentation is vital, limiting the blast radius of any intrusion and preventing lateral movement. Remote and third- party access should be tightly controlled. Continuous monitoring of OT networks, backed by anomaly detection, enables earlier detection of malicious activity. Backups, stored both offline and in the cloud, are essential for recovery from ransomware. Applying recognised frameworks such as IEC 62443 and NIST 800-82 helps benchmark and guide OT security.


2. Prepare for Incidents


Incident response must be treated as a business- critical function. Manufacturers should create and rehearse plans that define escalation routes, decision-making authority, and communications protocols. Also, ongoing, role-specific training ensures engineers, operators, and other frontline staff can recognise and report threats quickly, reducing dwell time for attackers. 3. Elevate Governance


Cyber risk is a board-level issue. Boards must regularly review security investments, audit resilience measures, and hold management accountable for maintaining readiness. Embedding cyber resilience into corporate governance fosters a culture where security is everyone’s responsibility. avella-security.com


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