The long lifecycles in industrial environments mean it is not uncommon to find OT remote maintenance solutions that have been in use for 10 years or more and no longer receive updates due to their age. In addition, special environmental conditions can develop over time due to things like the installation of remote maintenance access points in openly accessible areas.

If OT remote maintenance access points are not suitably secured due to long lifecycles, this facilitates unauthorised access to an ICS, and also to other networks and systems within and outside the corresponding OT. This can even make manipulations possible that could endanger life and limb.

In addition, integrated remote maintenance access points may have gone unnoticed in plants for many years. As a result of increasing dependencies on other networks and systems due to more recent technical changes, unauthorised access with critical consequences can then become increasingly likely.