Digitalization and automation are reaching into every aspect of food and beverage from processing to logistics.
New technologies can help companies improve productivity and efficiency, monitor and control the production process, reduce waste and ensure safety and quality.
But they can also bring increased cyber risks, expanding the size of the digital infrastructure giving cyber criminals a larger attack surface area.
As computer systems and operational technologies converge, these threats can affect every area of the business, not just IT, including:
- Supply chain
- Processing
- Production
- Quality control
- Distribution and sales
With cyber-crime becoming more sophisticated – and sensitivities around food and drink increasing – hackers can create disruption just by causing the wrong allergy information to be printed on a label.