Sensestone, an authentication security company, has secured a strategic investment from Hyundai Motor Group. This investment comes amidst growing demand for Operational Technology (OT) endpoint security in manufacturing sites as the transition to Smart Factories and Software-Centric Factories (SDF) spreads.

Sensestone announced on the 2nd that it had attracted strategic investment from Hyundai Motor Group through a third-party allocation paid-in capital increase. The size of the investment was not disclosed.

This investment is significant in that a company operating global manufacturing sites has invested in OT security technology. In the manufacturing industry, as industrial control system components such as PLCs, HMIs, RTUs, and SCADA are connected to networks and the use of remote maintenance increases, the importance of managing equipment access rights is growing.

Recently, cyber attacks targeting major infrastructure and manufacturing sites have also been continuing. With attacks targeting OT infrastructure, such as dams and water and sewage control systems, including PLC breaches at U.S. water treatment facilities, it is being pointed out that existing network perimeter-centric security alone is insufficient to respond.

In particular, as attack methods have been identified that exploit legitimate accounts or remote access paths to secure actual control authority, authentication and access control technologies that verify user identity and restrict access to facilities based on authority are becoming important in OT environments.

Sensestone is expanding its business for 'OTAC Trusted Access Gateway (TAG),' an OT endpoint authentication and access control solution based on One-Time Authentication Code (OTAC) technology. This technology is designed to implement one-way authentication without fixed passwords or continuous network connections.

OTAC TAG was developed to be applicable to various OT endpoint environments, such as PLC, HMI, RTU, DCS, and SCADA. Sensestone emphasizes that it can strengthen field authentication and access control without replacing existing equipment, requiring manufacturer support, or changing settings.

Sensestone secured application cases in the national infrastructure sector through the project 'Development of a User Authentication System to Enhance Security of Water Supply Monitoring and Control Equipment' conducted with the Korea Water Resources Corporation. Subsequently, it expanded application cases in the private manufacturing sector by supplying OTAC TAGs to the production sites of global energy solution companies.

In addition, Sensestone is conducting proof of concept (PoC) and product development with domestic and international PLC manufacturers, including LS Electric. The company plans to expand the scope of cooperation with manufacturers in the field of OT endpoint authentication and access control.

"This investment is significant beyond simple fundraising in that it demonstrates that a company operating in an actual global manufacturing environment has recognized the importance of OT endpoint security and authentication-based access control," said Yoo Chang-hoon, CEO of Sensestone.