India adopts international cybersecurity standards: Experts discussed benefits of IEC 62443

The increasing automation of industries and interconnection of devices put cybersecurity in the focus of businesses and regulators. Manufacturers must ensure the security of their processes at every stage - international standards provide valuable solutions for this. The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) therefore adopted the IEC 62443 series of standards which lays the foundation for a holistic approach to industrial security throughout the entire life cycle of automation solutions.

To support companies in implementing this new standard, BIS and GIZ – the German Agency for International Cooperation – jointly organised an online exchange with industry experts on 5 August 2020. More than 200 experts participated and learned how this series of standards can help them achieve a greater level of cybersecurity.

In their opening remarks, J. Roy Chowdhury and Rajeev Sharma from BIS emphasized the importance of international standards for economic development.

As knowledge partner, Siemens experts Kai Wollenweber, Maximilian Korff, and Vivek Roy introduced the IEC 62443 series of standards. They showed the benefits of a holistic security protection concept that includes technology, processes and people and introduced Siemens’ industrial security concept which is based on IEC 62443. The IEC 62443 series of standards addresses the complete security lifecycle with all relevant stakeholders.

Heiko Adamczyk from TÜV Süd presented current developments in the certification of cybersecurity, especially regarding IEC 62443. He described how TÜV Süd participates in the IEC System of Conformity Assessment Schemes for Electrotechnical Equipment and Components (IECEE), which eases the international use of cybersecurity certification.

Philip Grinsted from the Global Project Quality Infrastructure (GPQI) introduced the Indo-German Working Group on Quality Infrastructure. In the context of GPQI’s ongoing work on standardisation of the Internet of Things (IoT), he presented the Indo-German Discussion Paper: Securing the Internet of Things Together.

The online exchange was part of the activities of the Indo-German Working Group on Quality Infrastructure between the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi) and the Indian Ministry for Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution (MoCAF&PD). The Working Group provides a forum to improve the mutual understanding of policies and regulations, and to jointly develop positions and solutions for international technical harmonisation, for example in the field of standardisation.

In case you have questions on the new standards series, or its implications for your company, please contact us at qi-india@giz.de.