Worcester Business Journal

12 Worcester Business Journal | October 15, 2018 | wbjournal.com directly with any government agencies, but those requirements of a stringent security plan are still passed down from Micron's clients who deal directly with government security compliance. ose requirements include updating firewalls, testing the network for security, regular federal background checks of employ- ees, monitoring company lap- tops to ensure they don't leave the building with sensitive data, and prohibiting phone discussions about technical details with someone outside of the country. "e list goes on and on," Emma said. The most targeted industry e manufacturing industry is now the most targeted for cyber attacks, beating out the finance and healthcare industries, said Tom Andrellos, director of growth services at the Massachusetts Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MassMEP), at the agency's Manufactur- ing Symposium in October in Worcester. e foremost motivating factor for these attempted hacks is to steal intellec- tual property, said Andrellos. Quoting the FBI, Andrellos said $400 billion worth of information was stolen out of the country in 2017. e national network of MEPs, via the National Insti- tute of Standards and Technol- ogy, pointed to a September 2017 report from Woburn cybersecurity firm Kaspersky, which found the manufactur- ing industry most susceptible to cyber threats, including at- tacks targeted at network-con- nected equipment. Much of MassMEP's work around cybersecurity includes working with companies contracting directly with the U.S. Department of Defense, like Cam- bridge-based Silverside Detectors, which builds nuclear bomb detectors. Sarah Haig Baker, founder and chief operating officer of the company, told an audience at MassMEP's event about Manufacturing has become the most targeted industry for attacks from cyber criminals F O C U S I N F O R M A T I O N T E C H N O L O G Y BY ZACHARY COMEAU Worcester Business Journal Staff Writer T he majority of the web and email traffic to Micron Prod- ucts' servers is just bogus, said President and CEO Salvatore Emma, Jr. at spam comes from abroad, and most of it is attempted malicious cyber attacks designed to hack into the Fitch- burg company's network. e company is the exclusive supplier of non-lethal rounds to Wakefield-based Security Devices International, which supplies government agencies, police depart- ments and private security firms. "ey want our intellectual property," Emma said. "ey want to know what it is we're making so they can copy it. ey want to know who's working on what project so they can send their sales folks aer us." As the manufacturing industry becomes more technological, with more connected devices than ever, hackers have more opportunities to break into those networks. With urging from the government and public-private partner- ships, manufacturers are beginning to take more seriously the threat of a hack. Meeting government requirements According to Emma, a former IT spe- cialist, the company's IP addresses get hit from attempts largely from China. ose usually manifest in the form of phishing attacks, in which a phony email is sent from an employee. In one instance, an employee came to Emma to ask why he was asking for $3,000 worth of PayPal gi cards in an email. Micron is a bit lower down in the supply chain, as it doesn't contract Salvatore Emma, Jr., president & CEO of Micron Products An Industry under ATTACK Employees at Security Engineered Machinery in Westborough, which has the U.S. government as its biggest client, must log onto government networks to update security programs. PHOTO/EDD COTE

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