US and Europe Account for 73% of Global Exposed ICS Systems

73% of globally exposed ICS systems are in the US and Europe, with the US leading at 38%. Vulnerabilities in outdated protocols and exposed HMIs put critical infrastructure at severe risk, says Censys.

The Internet has revolutionized numerous industries, including manufacturing, energy, and water treatment. However, as more and more industrial control systems (ICS) are connected to the internet, they become increasingly vulnerable to cyberattacks. 

According to Censys’ annual State of the Internet Report, shared with Hackread.com, internet-exposed human-machine interfaces (HMIs) are the emerging new threat in ICS security. For your information, HMIs are the graphical interfaces used to monitor and control industrial systems.

Researchers at Censys, a leading internet intelligence company, observed that HMIs have become increasingly connected to the internet to enable remote access ...