More than a third of industrial organisations identify cybersecurity risk as one of the biggest external obstacles to growth, as the convergence of IT and operational technology (OT), wider use of AI and increasingly connected operations expand the potential impact of cyber incidents.
The finding comes from a global study commissioned by Rockwell Automation and conducted by Sapio Research, based on responses from 1,560 manufacturing and industrial decision-makers across 17 countries.
The research highlights a gap between organisations’ confidence in their cybersecurity capabilities and their exposure to incidents. Some 46% of respondents said their organisation had experienced a cyber incident in the previous 12 months, while 90% said they were confident in their ability to prevent, contain or recover from an attack.
Cybersecurity investment is nevertheless increasing. Some 62% of respondents said their organisation had invested in cybersecurity platforms, with cybersecurity ranked as the second-highest technology investment for perceived return on investment.
The study also points to growing interest in AI as a cybersecurity tool, with 45% of respondents saying they plan to apply AI or machine learning to cybersecurity initiatives over the next 12 months.
The increasing integration of IT and OT is another area of concern. Respondents ranked IT/OT integration points as the second-most vulnerable area to cyber incidents. At the same time, 37% said securing IT/OT architecture would contribute to positive business outcomes over the next five years.
The findings reflect a broader shift in industrial cybersecurity, where attacks on connected systems can have consequences beyond data loss or IT downtime, potentially affecting production, quality, safety and business continuity.
“Technology investments alone do not create operational resilience or confidence in an organisation’s security posture,” said Rick Kaun, Global Director of Cybersecurity Services at Rockwell Automation. “True resilience is built when cybersecurity becomes an integral part of business strategy.”
The study covered organisations across sectors including automotive, food and beverage, consumer packaged goods, semiconductor, energy and life sciences, with company revenues ranging from $100m to more than $30 billion.
