The remote maintenance access points in the OT of an organisation are usually numerous and diverse. In addition, a large number of internal and external persons access them. The maintenance of remote maintenance access in industry is therefore fundamentally complex and error-prone. Compared to office and building IT, there is a greater risk that the various access points will be insufficiently recorded and documented (i.e. cannot be verified).

If unknown, open access points for OT remote maintenance are not documented, the corresponding operator cannot prevent access. As a result, unauthorised users can directly influence the physical processes of an ICS, which can lead, for example, to individual components malfunctioning, an entire production plant coming to a standstill, and even to dangers to the life and limb of employees on site. If, for example, systems including decentralised components for remote maintenance are realised as a complete system (package unit) by the manufacturer, they are initially not subject to sufficient control by the operator. The operator must record each OT remote maintenance component individually and often actively reconfigure it.

If some OT remote maintenance access points are only recorded and documented in a decentralised manner, for instance, there is also a risk that necessary changes to individual access points will not made or that any changes will not be traceable.