Digital security with the io-key

Digital security with the io-key^®

No access, no entry, no admission. Simply shut.

This is how you can play it safe when digitising your machines and systems.

The basis for IIoT applications is the availability of sensor data in the cloud. As a plug-and-play solution consisting of an IO-Link interface and a mobile gateway, the io-key achieves this not only faster, but also significantly more securely than conventional approaches via the company network.

With the io-key, you can monitor, analyse and manage your sensor data online in three simple steps. It is compatible with over 20,000 sensors from more than 350 manufacturers and opens up a whole universe of new applications and possibilities. The io-key is the universal key to the IIoT. A security key, to be precise. And that is due to its very special operating principle.

Where no data is exchanged, you can’t be hacked either

The data from the connected devices are transmitted to the cloud via mobile communications without intervening in the IT infrastructure, the company network or the PLC. Security by design — for potential attackers targeting IT that means: no access, no entry, no admission. Just shut. But open to the user. Depending on the application and cloud environment, the user has access to field-level data for analysis and processing in enterprise software, up to and including ERP. That’s seamless IT/OT integration — just without IT risks.

End-to-end security from the sensor to the cloud – and back.

In the cloud, the user can monitor and evaluate the data, receive notifications by email or SMS in the event of target/actual deviations, and carry out simple switching and control tasks. All communication follows the strictest security criteria. The basics: full end-to-end encryption of data transmission via TLS, secure access via MQTTS, certificate-based authentication. The io-key features the most modern encryption, authentication and authorisation technologies, meaning your sensor data and cloud applications are safer than anywhere else. And regardless of whether this is your individual cloud environment (via apollo) or your individual dashboard in the autosen cloud, secured for authorised tenants only via password protection and user management.

The most important dos and don’ts in digitisation projects

• Use a secure mobile technology such as LTE Cat M1 for complete data transmission, not the company LAN
• Make sure you use up-to-date security standards – MQTTS works with TLS and is significantly more secure than MQTT.
• Use a secure cloud environment such as AWS, Azure or our autosen cloud.
• Clarify roles, access rights and users in advance. The rule is: less is more — IT security is not just a question of technology!