Cybersecurity Partnership Enables Consolidated IT/OT View

Sept. 21, 2021

Tripwire and Nozomi Networks partner to provide security controls across IT and operations technology in IoT environments.

David Greenfield, editor in chief

It’s not uncommon to hear advice from integrators and technology suppliers alike that, when it comes to the digital transformation of industry, there is no one company that can provide it all. That’s why you’ve been seeing more and more technology companies partnering to provide extended Industry 4.0 and Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) capabilities. Some of the higher profile announcements in this area include Rockwell and PTC, Siemens and SAP, and Google and Litmus.

The need for such partnerships not only applies to broad initiatives like Industry 4.0. It also applies to projects as specific as motion control and cybersecurity. And while such partnerships have accelerated in the past few years, they’ve been ongoing for a while, as evidenced by the Bosch Rexroth/National Instruments partnership on motion control, which was first announced more than six years ago.

Read about the Schneider Electric industrial cybersecurity partnership with Claroty.

Tim Erlin, vice president of strategy at Tripwire.

On the cybersecurity front, the newest partnership announcement involves Tripwire, a provider of security and compliance software, and Nozomi Networks, a provider of OT (operations technology) and IoT security. This partnership is aimed at lowering industrial companies’ cybersecurity risk through “consistent security controls that span IT, operations technology (OT), and IIoT environments.”

Specifically, the partnership combines Tripwire’s compliance tools with Nozomi Networks’ industrial cybersecurity, asset visibility, vulnerability analytics, and real-time monitoring. According to the two companies, customers using these combined technologies can:

Have a consolidated view of their policy compliance across IT and OT systems;
Build a comprehensive IT and OT asset inventory across the organization;
Improve visibility into OT information for IT personnel; and
Consolidate change reconciliation and workflow for IT and OT teams.

Learn about the Shell, Baker Hughes, Microsoft, and C3 AI partnership around the Open AI Energy Initiative.

Tim Erlin, vice president of strategy at Tripwire, said, “With Nozomi Networks, our customers now have access to OT and IoT network monitoring and threat detection that is fully integrated with Tripwire’s industry standard solutions for integrity monitoring, change detection, and compliance validation. By partnering with Nozomi, we are able to provide a complete and consolidated view of customers’ IT and OT security and compliance posture, using proven solutions that meet the industry need.”

Chet Namboodri, Nozomi Networks’ senior vice president of business development and alliances.

Noting how the capabilities of this newly announced partnership are already being applied in industry, Chet Namboodri, Nozomi Networks’ senior vice president of business development and alliances, added, “We’ve already successfully worked together [with Tripwire] on customer integrations in [the] power utilities, oil & gas, and manufacturing [industries] and firmly believe this partnership accelerates our joint efforts to help customers worldwide meet new requirements for IT and OT security and compliance.”

About the Author

David Greenfield, editor in chief | Editor in Chief

David Greenfield joined Automation World in June 2011. Bringing a wealth of industry knowledge and media experience to his position, David’s contributions can be found in AW’s print and online editions and custom projects. Earlier in his career, David was Editorial Director of Design News at UBM Electronics, and prior to joining UBM, he was Editorial Director of Control Engineering at Reed Business Information, where he also worked on Manufacturing Business Technology as Publisher.