Skkynet Cloud Systems announced a cooperative agreement with Siemens Mobility GmbH to provide a highly secure Industrial IoT hardware and software combination. Siemens Mobility will be using Skkynet's DataHub real-time middleware to connect its Data Capture Unit (DCU) - ensuring one-way data flow, to industrial and corporate software. This will allow secure access to plant data by corporate IT staff and cloud services in real time.
“Through digitalization, Siemens Mobility is providing transportation operators with intelligent infrastructure and this collaboration will expand our ability to bring secure connectivity to critical systems across industrial sectors,” said Andre Rodenbeck, CEO Mobility Management, Siemens Mobility. “We see value for and need within the Industrial IoT market to mitigate the risk of connectivity to the cloud as well as IT Networks.”
“This agreement couples the best features of both products,” said Harry Forbes, Research Director at ARC Advisory Group. “The Skkynet DataHub software has been designed to enable outbound data flow with no changes to corporate firewalls. Together with the Siemens DCU data diode functionality, the combination provides real-time asset data with security from both hardware and software.”
Smart hardware implementation
The Data Capture Unit (DCU) from Siemens Mobility is a small, reliable and cost-effective hardware implementation of data diode technology designed for Industrial Internet connectivity. It is designed to eliminate any direct wired (optical or copper) physical connections. This allows the DCU to meet all major cybersecurity regulations for critical infrastructure and to operate in rugged environmental conditions (industrial and transportation). Typically located on the edge of the network, the DCU provides boundary protection for the Operations Technology (OT) network, and a secure bridge when connected to the Information Technology (IT) network.
Cogent DataHub One-Way Gateway
The Cogent DataHub from Skkynet has been extensively tested by Siemens Mobility to act as a secure and easy-to-configure One-Way Gateway (OWG) for the DCU. The DataHub software collects and filters data on the OT side, supporting protocols OPC UA, OPC DA, OPC A&E, and Modbus. The data is then sent via the DCU to a second DataHub on the IT side, which pushes it along by TCP or ODBC to IT applications, or by MQTT to Siemens’ IoT platform MindSphere or other cloud services. The DataHub’s secure-by-design architecture is fully compatible with the DCU’s one-way model, and allows industrial protocols like OPC UA and others to function seamlessly with the DCU.
“This collaboration offers industrial users in all sectors—healthcare, energy, oil & gas, and transportation to name a few—a highly secure and cost-effective Internet gateway,” said Paul Thomas, President of Skkynet. “Equally effective for both new and legacy systems, it allows virtually any company to easily make secure connections to the Industrial IoT.”
Secure OT – IT bridge
Working together, the DCU and DataHub provide a secure OT – IT bridge and vendor-neutral connectivity, supporting main industrial protocols. The DCU ensures the highest safety and security level for the protected assets, while the DataHub enables real-time secure connectivity across a wide range of protocols on both sides of the connection. Both the hardware and software have been proven in the field for many years and are used in thousands of applications in virtually all industrial sectors.
