In the past, Information Technology (IT) and Operational Technology (OT) lived in separate worlds. IT ran your data; OT ran your machinery, and the two never met. But today, they are not just bumping into each other. They’re converging at speed.
As operations extend to edge locations, from factories and hospitals to remote data sites, this convergence creates massive opportunity. But it also opens new vulnerabilities. When the digital meets the physical, security gaps become business risks.
Why This Matters: Securing IT-OT Convergence
Edge locations are multiplying, and they rely on both IT (for control, analytics, and communication) and OT (for sensors, machinery, and physical systems). The result? A web of interconnected devices where a breach doesn’t just threaten data but can halt production, compromise safety, and put lives at risk.
Take manufacturing. A ransomware attack on an OT system could stop an assembly line mid-run. In healthcare, a breach could delay access to life-critical equipment. Even a minor disruption at the edge can ripple across your entire network.
Add to that the growing pressure from compliance regulations, and the stakes are even higher.
What We are Seeing: A Vulnerable Cyber Landscape
Attacks on critical infrastructure are up. The 2021 Colonial Pipeline attack cost millions and sparked fuel shortages. This ransomware attack led to the theft of nearly 100 gigabytes of data and crippled the company’s IT systems. This kind of situation is no longer science fiction, but a standard operating risk.
The problem? OT systems were never designed for external connectivity. Many still run on legacy hardware with little to no built-in cybersecurity. Meanwhile, IT systems, though more mature in security, still struggle to manage the surge in endpoints and decentralized infrastructure.
Most edge locations are understaffed or even unmanned, making real-time detection and response difficult, if not impossible. These edge devices are often deployed in very remote or physically challenging locations, for example are the cell towers, oil rigs, construction sites, etc., where staffing is limited or impractical. And since there are unmanned locations, they are more vulnerable to physical security breaches and require critical infrastructure protection and a strong remote monitoring and management solutions.
The Consequences: When the Gap Becomes a Breach
When IT and OT security are not properly integrated, here is what can happen:
- Data gets leaked.
- Machines go
- Incidents escalate while the team scrambles.
- Reputations take a hit.
- Downtime scales, especially across hundreds of edge sites.
Manual patching and siloed systems leave too much room for error. And in today’s high-speed business world, even minutes of downtime are too expensive to ignore.
The Edge Challenge: Securing What’s Out of Sight
Securing edge infrastructure means rethinking cybersecurity. It’s not about more tools because it’s about smarter coordination. You need:
- Real-time visibility into both IT and OT systems.
- Remote control and diagnostics that can be accessed even when the network is down.
- Tools that work in rugged, space-constrained environments.
Traditional IT solutions don’t cut it anymore. OT demands a new breed of security. It needs the one that understands physical infrastructure but speaks fluently digitally.
The Solution: How Vertiv™ Avocent® DSView™ Solution Closes the Gap
Vertiv™ Avocent® DSView™ Solution offers a unified approach to managing and securing hybrid infrastructure. Here’s what it brings to the table:
- Unified oversight: Manage both IT and OT infrastructure, both locally and remotely.
- Out-of-band management: Regain control even during network outages.
- Real-time monitoring: Track power, temperature, connectivity, and device health.
- Secure access control: Role-based permissions, audit trails, and encrypted channels.
- Scalable rollout: Minimal footprint, fast deployment, designed for edge sites.
Think of it as a control tower for your edge to bridge the gap without widening your risk.
Secure the Edge, Secure the Future
IT and OT can no longer afford to operate in silos. Especially not when the edge is where growth and risk are accelerating.
To secure the future, organizations need:
- Visibility across distributed infrastructure. It’s always true that you can’t protect what you can’t Edge sites like micro data centers, factory floors, and remote offices are often unmanned and under-monitored. Without real-time insight into what’s happening at each location, small issues can turn into big outages. You should be able to catch overheating, power loss, and hardware failures before they cascade. You should also be able to track IT (servers, switches) and OT (sensors, controllers) in one dashboard. Vertiv™ DSView™ and Unify platforms offer centralized, real-time visibility over power, environment, and asset health, even across global deployments.
- Access that works, even during downtime. Networks going down is inevitable, but you should be prepared when it happens. When the network goes down or if an edge device becomes unreachable, you still need to get in. Traditional remote access solutions fail in these scenarios, but out-of-band management lets teams troubleshoot and restore systems even during outages. This reduces recovery time from hours to minutes and empowers IT teams to act quickly without dispatching on-site staff. Vertiv™ Avocent® MP1000 and DSView™ can help IT teams to securely access devices at the BIOS level, apply patches, reboot servers, and diagnose problems that’s completely independent of the main network.
- Control that doesn’t compromise security. Giving people access doesn’t mean giving up control. Companies, especially today that there are hybrid setups, need granular permissions, audit trails, and secure protocols to ensure only the right people have the right access at the right time. This prevents insider threats and accidental misconfigurations and supports compliance with industry regulations like ISO, HIPAA, and NIST. It also maintains governance across multiple roles and regions. Vertiv™ DSView™ supports role-based access control, encrypted sessions, and full activity logging to ensure enterprise-grade edge security and core alike.
Vertiv™ Avocent® DSView™ Solution delivers all three, and because in this new era, the edge isn’t just a location but a battleground. Discover how DSVS protects your edge now before the gap becomes a breach.
