Honeywell: How USBs are Threatening Industrials

Honeywell

Feb 13, 2019

By Honeywell

Removable USB media devices such as flash drives are commonplace and convenient when it comes to sharing information – those tiny flash drives can hold a lot of data.

And, it turns out, a lot of malicious threats.

At industrials, USBs are often used by employees and contractors visiting sites to share and transfer files and update patches.

Our new research shows that they also pose a significant cybersecurity threat to industrial networks. While monitoring 50 industrial plants in the energy, oil and gas, chemical and paper and pulp industries across the world for cybersecurity threats through our new Secure Media Exchange (SMX) solution, we caught Stuxnet, Mirai and WannaCry lurking in the USB drives.

Here’s a sample of the findings:

44% detected and blocked at least one security issue
This confirms that USBs remain a significant vector for industrial threats. It has become easy for hackers to spread malware, ransomware attacks, steal confidential data and bring down production sites through USBs.

26% of those threats were major 

These weren’t just blips – they could lead to significant disruption by causing operators to lose visibility or control of their operations.

15% of threats were high-profile and well-known

Odds are you’ve heard of these worms and viruses, including Stuxnet (2 percent), Mirai (6 percent), Triton (2 percent) and WannaCry (1 percent). They’ve existed for a long time and they were attempting to enter industrial facilities via removable storage devices in high density.

9% were designed to exploit USBs

Most of the malware detected were Trojans (55 percent), followed by bots (11 percent) and hacktools (6 percent).
And 9 percent were designed to directly exploit USB protocol and interface weaknesses, making them especially effective.

Read the full report here.

Related Articles


Latest Articles


Changing Scene

  • SurgePure Corporation Expands into the Mid-West with New Representation Partner, Advance Electrical Agency

    SurgePure Corporation Expands into the Mid-West with New Representation Partner, Advance Electrical Agency

    August 1, 2025 SurgePure Corporation is proud to announce its new partnership with Advance Electrical Agency, who will represent the company across Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Western Ontario. Led by principals Darren Churchwell and Bob Fiesel , the Advance team is part of a well-established agency known for representing some of the most respected manufacturers in… Read More…

  • Munden Partners with Valid Manufacturing in Atlantic Canada

    Munden Partners with Valid Manufacturing in Atlantic Canada

    August 1, 2025 Munden Enterprises has announced that they are back in the custom enclosure business through a new partnership with Valid Manufacturing Ltd. Expect Canadian-made, engineered solutions for industrial, utility, transportation, wastewater, renewables, and beyond. Whether you need a bare enclosure or a fully assembled panel, Munden is here to help. Reach out to… Read More…

  • JEHS Joins Forces with NOARK to Deliver Smarter Electrical Solutions in Ontario

    JEHS Joins Forces with NOARK to Deliver Smarter Electrical Solutions in Ontario

    August 1, 2025 NOARK Electric is pleased to announce a new partnership with Cambridge, Ontario based manufacturing representitive, JEHS. This strategic collaboration will expand NOARK’s reach and customer support across Ontario and beyond, bringing reliable and innovative electrical solutions to a wider audience. With over 50 years of combined sales experience, JEHS brings a strong… Read More…

  • BC Hydro Making it Easier and More Affordable to Connect New Homes

    BC Hydro Making it Easier and More Affordable to Connect New Homes

    July 24, 2025 BC Hydro is supporting the construction of new housing developments in growing communities by advancing changes to streamline upgrades and reducing the cost of new customer connections to BC Hydro’s electricity grid. “As communities across B.C. grow, so does the need for essential housing. We are committed to ensuring we’re ready to… Read More…