PTC Takes a Radical Stance on Security for PLM and IoT
At PTC’s LiveWorx 2019 conference, the PLM vendor made major announcements about its commitment to cloud computing and the internet of things (IoT). The underlying theme of these announcements was security.
- “We're all going to get hacked,” said Joshua Corman, Chief Security Officer at PTC, “The goal is to limit the damage a hacker can cause.”
- Corman spoke about mitigating the risks presented by the IoT and cloud computing. He explained that organizations are vulnerable regardless of how they store their intellectual property.
- Corman stressed that applications like PTC’s Windchill PLM must put more focus on shielding their users from ill-intentioned actors looking to gain access to product data.
- The discussion wrapped up with a renewed commitment to a shared model for IoT safety and security.
Source: PTC Windchill at SoftwareReviews, Accessed August 20, 2019
Our Take
Historically, moving customers to cloud platforms has been difficult for PLM vendors. This is because the intellectual property housed within the PLM application (i.e. a new product design) is a high-value asset for most organizations. IT has been hesitant to relinquish control of the on-premises hardware used to store the designs. Many organizations have gone so far as to store product designs on devices hidden in secret locations that are not connected to the internet.
While security seems like a mundane topic to draw attention to at a conference, this type of security-focused messaging is the only way PLM vendors will get customers to consider moving from on-premises to their cloud.