#Cybersecurity #Denmark #Copenhagen #Remote Access #Secomea

Industrial Organizations Overestimate Remote Access Security

According to the recently released report titled "The State of Industrial Remote Access 2026," businesses in the industrial sector are approaching the year with heightened confidence regarding their remote access security measures. However, this optimism appears to overshadow some unsettling realities, as revealed by a global study commissioned by Secomea which surveyed 400 senior executives across manufacturing and critical infrastructure sectors.

Overview of Findings

The report highlights a significant gap between perceived security preparedness and actual operational effectiveness. While many organizations claim that their session visibility and regulatory readiness are adequate, it becomes evident that substantial structural deficiencies exist in supplier monitoring, skill set hygiene, and audit capabilities. This discrepancy has led to a growing “disparity between confidence and evidence” in the industrial cybersecurity arena. Notably, despite increased trust in regulatory compliance, comprehensive auditing of supplier sessions is still an infrequent practice.

Key Insights:

1. Supplier Access as a Major Risk Multiplier: As supplier ecosystems expand, the likelihood of security incidents rises dramatically. Organizations managing between 21 to 100 external vendors report the highest levels of risk exposure, particularly where session visibility is limited, and accreditation checks are infrequent.
2. Partial Supplier Visibility is the Global Standard: Only 43% of organizations reported having complete audit trails for supplier sessions. Most function with partial visibility, leading to compliance blind spots and forensic challenges.
3. Correlation of Lack of Vendor Visibility and Incident Exposure: A lack of vendor visibility correlates strongly with universal exposure to incidents, which is a cause for alarm in the industrial sector.
4. Impact of Zero Trust Adoption: The implementation of Zero Trust principles shows a measurable positive relationship with enhanced session visibility, improved auditability of suppliers, expedited vendor activation, and reduced incident volatility.
5. Significant Governance Alignments: Nearly 70% of organizations operate under shared IT/OT governance models, which are often linked with better-balanced security, operational agility, and audit capabilities. Conversely, poor alignment nearly triples the risk of supplier-related incidents.
6. Tool Fragmentation Erodes Control: Many organizations utilize multiple parallel access tools such as VPNs, OEM utilities, PAM solutions, and emerging OT-focused platforms, which leads to decreased session visibility as tool complexity increases.
7. Accelerating Consolidation Trend: The data suggests a clear market shift towards unified access platforms centered around identity management. Organizations leveraging dedicated OT platforms report higher average session visibility and stronger audit trail rates.

Structural Change Versus Tactical Improvement

As regulatory pressures increase and supplier ecosystems expand, the industry is moving towards federated supplier control models, shared IT/OT governance, and identity-based access control. This transition signifies a shift from fragmented, reactive access to standardized and policy-driven remote operations.

In summary, the report illustrates the importance of recognizing the complex layers of remote access security and the urgent need for industrial organizations to establish an operational control layer that effectively governs access, enhances visibility, and facilitates unified auditing. This structural shift is critical as organizations work to safeguard their operations and ensure compliance in an increasingly interconnected world.

About the Report

The "State of Industrial Remote Access 2026" report is based on a global survey of 400 IT and operational technology leaders, compliance experts, and executives from industrial sectors. It reviews architectural patterns, governance models, supplier access practices, Zero Trust adoption, regulatory alignment, and operational performance metrics.

About Secomea

Secomea is a secure remote access solution designed for industrial networks and telecommunications equipment. Trusted by over 8,000 clients globally, Secomea provides secure remote access to machinery while improving cybersecurity for organizations worldwide. For more than 15 years, Secomea has supported manufacturers and machine builders with a straightforward, scalable solution that connects IT/OT requirements, ensuring necessary visibility, compliance, and control to protect operations.