Soon after launching Wurldtech Security Technologies in 2006 as a consulting company focused on helping manufacturers eliminate security vulnerabilities from plant floor automation networks, CEO R. Tyler Williams came to a surprising discovery. “We found security problems in the field that you wouldn’t believe,” Williams says, “poorly coded programs, bad ladder logic for PLCs, the kinds of things that, if exploited, would cause significant downtime and employee safety problems.”
So Williams decided to expand Wurldtech’s business and develop Achilles Satellite, a testing platform that lets manufacturers and automation equipment manufacturers identify and diagnose vulnerabilities in any device, system, or application found on an IP-based process control network.
Unlike other tools that attempt to protect industrial networks by erecting firewalls and intrusion detection barriers, Achilles Satellite lets manufacturers and automation vendors continuously test PLCs, OPC-enabled devices, and other automation equipment. The testing tool, which often is used in conjunction with a firewall, allows manufacturers to monitor and evaluate network disruptions and pinpoint and diagnose failures.
Using data collected by Achilles Satellite in the field, Wurldtech has also developed an extensive database of real-world control system vulnerabilities and fixes that manufacturers can use to quickly mitigate security holes.