Forrester’s OT security rankings have seen Cisco maintain its top spot, while Palo Alto Networks has moved up to the leading position, with Claroty and Tenable dropping to solid performers. The shift towards asset- and data-centric security models has brought challenges, particularly in implementing modern security measures on older OT systems. Brian Wrozek, a principal analyst at Forrester, highlighted the importance of addressing identity-based threats, adopting zero-trust models, and utilizing cloud-based management and security solutions in OT environments.
Companies like Palo Alto Networks and Cisco have differentiated themselves by offering comprehensive protection capabilities, including asset identification, threat detection, and secure remote access. Wrozek emphasized the need for a broader cybersecurity focus beyond just OT and IoT environments to better address the evolving threat landscape. While smaller organizations may prefer a single platform for OT security, larger organizations in critical industries might opt for best-of-breed solutions from specialized vendors.
The Forrester Wave of OT security has seen changes, with Palo Alto Networks, Cisco, Microsoft, Fortinet, and Claroty leading the current edition. The move towards cloud solutions in OT security aims to enhance efficiency and accessibility of data, but also poses new security challenges. The integration of generative AI is expected to improve security and operational capabilities in OT environments, although its impact still lags behind other cybersecurity sectors.
Looking ahead, Wrozek predicts a greater emphasis on identity management in OT environments, driven by the need for tighter control over human and machine identities. Greater integration of IT and OT systems will require new security approaches to address the combined threat landscape. Outside of the leaders, the OT security market includes top performers such as Claroty, Tenable, Dragos, Nozomi Networks, Forescout, Fortinet, Armis, and Honeywell.
Palo Alto Networks recently released hardened firewalls designed for outdoor and harsh environments to better serve industrial control systems. The company’s holistic approach to OT security integrates visibility, segmentation, policy generation, and asset utilization into a unified workflow for easy management across multiple verticals. Cisco has focused on unifying security information across IT and OT environments, with investments in technologies like Splunk to enhance data visibility and automate decision-making processes. Moving forward, both companies are committed to addressing criticisms and improving their capabilities to deliver comprehensive compliance monitoring and security solutions in OT environments.
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