Secure remote access into OT, engineered to NERC CIP-005.
Remote Access Hardening
Vendors, integrators, and your own engineers reach remote sites over links your auditor will ask about. We map every interactive and vendor path into the control network, engineer one governed way in that you own, and hand you the evidence for CIP-005 R2 and R3. Devices on the path that can't change get a compensating-control record.
Engineered by Jeremiah Coakley, Principal Security Architect
The engagement
Map it, engineer it, evidence it.
One site at a time, scoped by the number of access paths into it. Each path ends the engagement engineered or documented, with evidence attached.
Inventory
Every path into the site
Each interactive and vendor remote access path into the control network, mapped end to end: who connects, from where, through what, and over which carrier, including the cellular and satellite links that backhaul remote sites.
Engineer
One governed way in
Access through an Intermediate System in your own tenant, tied to your identity provider: multi-factor authentication, no inbound ports opened at the site, time-boxed sessions, encryption that ends at the Intermediate System, and the ability to see and end an active vendor session. Hybrid post-quantum key exchange on the path where both ends support it.
Evidence
A package your auditor can follow
Session logs written to an audit sink in your account, and an evidence package mapped to NERC CIP-005 R2 and R3, NIST 800-53 AC-17, IA-2, SC-8, and AU-2, and ISA/IEC 62443.
Document
The devices that can't change
A field device on the path that can't take multi-factor authentication or modern encryption gets a risk-acceptance record with compensating controls, an owner, and a review date.
Who holds the keys
The access broker is yours.
A shared remote-access service that reaches many operators' management networks is a single point of compromise for all of them. The Intermediate System we engineer runs in your own tenant, authenticates against your identity provider, and writes its session logs to your account. Our access during the engagement is time-boxed, and your team can revoke it.
Inside an Electronic Security Perimeter, the work runs through your integrator or your team after a CIP-004 personnel risk assessment. We engineer and verify the change and deliver it for them to apply.
Questions
Remote access under NERC CIP
What does NERC CIP-005 R2 require for interactive remote access?
For high- and medium-impact BES Cyber Systems with External Routable Connectivity, CIP-005-7 R2 requires interactive remote access to pass through an Intermediate System so the initiating Cyber Asset never reaches the system directly, encryption that terminates at the Intermediate System, and multi-factor authentication. It also requires a way to determine active vendor remote access sessions, including system-to-system sessions, and a way to disable them.
What does CIP-005 R3 add for vendor remote access?
CIP-005-7 R3 extends vendor remote access management to the EACMS and PACS associated with high-impact systems and medium-impact systems with External Routable Connectivity: you need methods to determine active vendor remote access sessions and to disable or terminate them. We engineer both and capture the evidence that shows they work.
How do you handle remote sites reached over cellular or satellite links?
The carrier is one segment of the path. The inventory records every backhaul link into a site, and the engineered path encrypts and authenticates end to end across it, so the controls hold whichever network carries the session. Links with high latency or tight bandwidth are scoped for session timeouts and logging that still work over them.
Who owns the access broker after the engagement?
You do. The Intermediate System runs in your tenant against your identity provider, and the session logs land in an audit sink in your account. Our own access during the engagement is time-boxed and revocable by your team.
Can you work inside an Electronic Security Perimeter?
Work inside an ESP runs through your integrator or your team, after a CIP-004 personnel risk assessment. We engineer and verify the change and deliver it for them to apply.
We are not a NERC utility. Does this still apply?
Yes. Water and wastewater systems, pipelines, and manufacturers face the same vendor and remote access risk on remote sites. The same engineered path maps to NIST 800-53 AC-17 and ISA/IEC 62443, and to CIP-003 electronic access controls for low-impact BES assets.
How is Remote Access Hardening priced?
At a fixed price set by the number of sites and access paths. After a scoping call and an NDA, we return a fixed scope within 24 hours (business days). Integrators and primes receive partner pricing to deliver it inside their program.
A CIP-005 audit coming, or a vendor path you can't account for?
Book a scoping call. Once an NDA is in place, we scope the sites and paths over a channel you choose and return a fixed price within 24 hours (business days).
Book a Scoping CallNot sure where to start? Tell us where you are.
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