Moxa, a provider of network infrastructure solutions for the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), announced a new firmware upgrade for its industrial Ethernet switches with major enhancements for its security functionalities.
This new firmware, called Turbo Pack 3, is not only compliant with the IEC 62443-4-2 level 2 cybersecurity standard, but also supports other security management features, such as MAC Address and RADIUS authentication to prevent from unauthorised access, known security leaks and unknown attacks. At present, Moxa's EDS-G500E and EDS-518E/528E DIN-rail switches support Turbo Pack 3, and all of Moxa's industrial Ethernet switches will support the new firmware by 2017.
Increased device-level security
According to an ICS-CERT report, cyber-attacks on the critical manufacturing sector increased by 50% from 2014 to 2015. The report noted that a lack of proper access management and network probing are among the most common network vulnerabilities. One of the key mechanisms to ensure a safe and reliable network is to strengthen device-level security.
Turbo Pack 3 ensures Moxa's switches comply with the IEC 62443-4-2 level 2 standard, which provides technical security requirements and guidelines for network device suppliers and engineers. Moreover, the new firmware upgrade supports MAC authentication bypass via RADIUS server, and also fixes certain security vulnerabilities to protect the switches from malicious intrusion.
Ensure network availability
The firmware upgrade also supports enhancements in redundancy technologies, such as V-ON, traffic management, and real-time event notifications. With these new functionalities, Moxa's switches are enable higher network availability and reliability, which is crucial for mission-critical applications.