An essential function of automation systems involves monitoring the operating states of the process to be automated. This usually takes into account process-related warnings (e.g. exceeded fill levels) and technical parameters (e.g. temperature or valve position). In contrast, the supporting IT infrastructure is often not monitored.

If unusual or security-relevant events are inadequately monitored (or not at all), attempted attacks, network bottlenecks, or foreseeable failures cannot be detected at an early stage.