The reliance on external support is a functional necessity in modern manufacturing, yet the governance of these connections lags behind technical implementation. According to Secomea’s State of Industrial Remote Access 2026 report, 57% of North American organizations now coordinate with six or more external vendors to maintain OT environments. However, this operational dependence is not matched by oversight: only 46% of these firms maintain full auditability of vendor sessions, and a mere 23% conduct monthly reviews of vendor credentials.
Industrial Manufacturers Struggle to Govern Third-Party OT Access
While manufacturers have fortified their networks against ransomware, a significant security blind spot remains in how they manage external partners. New research from Secomea reveals that despite widespread reliance on third-party vendors for operational technology maintenance, most organizations lack the visibility and rigorous audit trails required to secure these trusted connections.
Knud Kegel, CTPO at Secomea, notes that cyberattacks increasingly weaponize legitimate remote access rather than breaching perimeters. The data suggests that success requires a shift away from fragmented VPNs and vendor-specific tools toward centralized governance models. Organizations that integrate IT and OT oversight report lower incident rates, underscoring that effective security relies on a blend of identity verification, just-in-time access, and rapid revocation protocols. As industrial ecosystems become more complex, the ability to demonstrate exactly who accessed a system—and why—is becoming as critical to production as the remote connectivity itself.
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