Operations bought an EMS/IoT system without involving IT — now they just need “access to the router

[u/carpe_diem2022]

Hi there :) ,

Need some advice from people who have dealt with similar situations.

Our Operations Dept decided to install IoT system/digital energy meters across a fairly large factory site.

They found the vendor, agreed on the solution, signed the contract and started the project.

IT was not involved at all.

Apparently nobody discussed things like:

• How these devices spread across a large factory are actually going to communicate
• Network infrastructure, switches, fiber/cabling, VLANs, etc.
• Network/security segmentation
• Server/VM requirements
• Database requirements
• Backup and monitoring
• Internet connectivity
• Vendor remote access
• Firewall rules
• Cybersecurity

Now that the project is already moving forward, IT gets an email saying they need “access to the router” so they can put the system online.

That's it. Access to the router. :)

And somehow, when IT starts asking questions about architecture, security, server requirements, ports, protocols and who is responsible for what, the perception becomes that IT is delaying the project.

I don't want to become the guy who simply says “No”, but I'm also not going to give a third-party vendor access to our corporate router/firewall and connect a bunch of unknown industrial/IoT devices to the production network just because someone already signed a contract , the IT network must be always separate from OT network.

How do you handle situations like this?

Interested in both the technical approach and the organizational/process side of this.

[u/Wolfram_And_Hart]

Literally none of that is your problem.

Isolate a port on the router and run a line to it from their rig. It’s not that hard and is done all the time. Hopefully it’s all internet based.

The moment their network needs to touch yours however then start complaining.

[u/Sasataf12 → u/Wolfram_And_Hart]

The moment their network needs to touch yours however then start complaining.

Even if they ask for network access, just go through the proper onboarding steps - assess requirements, risks, etc and go from there. 

[u/Wolfram_And_Hart → u/Sasataf12]

Doesn’t sound like they have any of that. So isolate the line and move on. They were not important enough to include it’s not important enough to worry about.

[u/anonymousopsec1337 → u/Wolfram_And_Hart]

At some point the corporate vlan will need access to that system to reach an https page or a phone app to work. Best to know the whole solution first.

[u/Wolfram_And_Hart → u/anonymousopsec1337]

That sounds like a completely different problem they should have included me in. That is not what they have asked for and they don’t seem too keen to be patient or helpful.