This summer, a new research group will start at Paderborn University, focussing on the security of so-called cyber-physical systems. These are technical systems that only function through their networking via IT and the internet. One current example is the car: sensor data from the vehicle is shared via the Internet and analysed in fractions of a second for hazard reports. Cyber-physical production systems connect machines, sensors and software and control industrial processes in real time. At the heart of Industry 4.0, they enable flexible, decentralised and highly automated production. However, digitalisation also increases the risk: hackers can infiltrate such systems and cause enormous material damage. The newly established "MODID" research group aims to counter precisely these dangers at the interface between the "cyber world" and physical Mechanical Engineering. The work is being funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) with around four million euros for an initial period of four years.
Security right from the start: Attacks are part of the planning
Cyber-physical systems can adapt and optimise themselves - this increases efficiency and competitiveness. In production, however, targeted attacks can disrupt or even completely paralyse manufacturing processes. The consequences: Downtime, costs and reputational damage. This is where the DFG Research Unit MODID comes in. "Our aim is to take security into account as early as the system design stage. To this end, we are developing defence strategies that take attacks on subsystems into account from the outset," explains Professor Dr. Eric Bodden from the Heinz Nixdorf Institute at Paderborn University, who heads the research group[1]. The team works on an interdisziplin?r basis: "Computer Science, Mechanical Engineering and Business Administration and Economics research together - in the spirit of Heinz Nixdorf - in our innovation and production laboratories," adds Prof. Dr.-Ing. Iris Gr??ler, deputy head of the research group. This means that not only the technical aspect, but also the economic and organisational aspects of security are taken into account. Research groups promote innovative research approaches and strengthen cutting-edge scientific research in Germany.
Multi-layered protection: "Defence in Depth"
The approach that the scientists are pursuing is called "Defence in Depth", which translates as "multi-layered protection". Instead of installing just one cyber security barrier, several layers are created at the same time. "There will always be successful attacks. But even if one layer is breached, the next remains active. This significantly increases the resilience of the systems and, above all, makes it possible to predict the resilience of the system under different attack conditions," explains Professor Bodden. The results are not only intended to advance research, but also to be directly transferred to industry practice. Companies should thus be better protected against attacks and become more secure in the future when handling technical products and in production as a whole.
This text was translated automatically.
[1] Full title of the research group "Attack-proof development of cyber-physical systems using model-based defence in depth"
