AI Security for
Industrial Automation
Industrial environments demand zero tolerance for data exposure. T-IA Connect brings AI to your PLC programming workflow with on-premise architecture, strict data isolation, and alignment with IEC 62443 industrial cybersecurity standards.
Why AI Security Is Critical in Industry
AI is rapidly entering industrial automation — but most AI tools were designed for the software world, not for OT (Operational Technology) environments where safety and confidentiality are non-negotiable. When your AI assistant processes PLC code, it touches your production logic, safety sequences, process parameters, and competitive know-how.
Cloud-based AI copilots transmit this sensitive data to external servers. In regulated industries — automotive, pharmaceutical, defense, energy, water treatment — this is a compliance red line. IEC 62443, NIS2, and GDPR all impose strict controls on where industrial data can go and who can access it.
T-IA Connect solves this with a fundamentally different architecture: a local MCP server that runs entirely on your engineering workstation. Your PLC project data stays on your network. You choose your AI model. You keep full control.
What Can Go Wrong with Cloud AI in Industry
The risks are real — and often underestimated by IT teams unfamiliar with OT environments
Intellectual Property Leakage
Your PLC code encodes decades of engineering know-how: production sequences, recipes, safety interlocks, machine timing. Sending it to external AI servers risks exposing trade secrets to third-party data centers, fine-tuning datasets, or security breaches at the AI provider.
Regulatory Non-Compliance
IEC 62443 zones and conduits restrict data flows between OT and external networks. NIS2 mandates cybersecurity risk management for critical infrastructure operators. Using cloud AI without data flow controls can invalidate your compliance posture and expose you to significant penalties.
Network Attack Surface Expansion
Connecting your OT network to cloud AI endpoints introduces new attack vectors. Any internet-connected service reachable from your engineering workstation can become a pivot point. OT/IT convergence without proper segmentation amplifies the blast radius of a breach.
Supply Chain Risk
Cloud AI providers are high-value targets. A breach at your AI vendor can expose all the production logic your engineers have shared. Unlike traditional software supply chain risks, this includes real-time process knowledge that is extremely difficult to "rotate" after exposure.
How T-IA Connect Addresses IEC 62443
Mapped to the key security requirements of the industrial cybersecurity standard
SR 1.1 — Human User Identification
T-IA Connect authenticates all API calls with per-user license keys. Every action taken by the AI through the MCP server is attributed to an identified user, maintaining the audit trail required by IEC 62443-2-1.
SR 1.3 — Account Management
The T-IA Connect license system provides centralized user management. Licenses can be revoked immediately, limiting the window of exposure if an engineer leaves the organization or credentials are compromised.
SR 3.4 — Software and Information Integrity
Because T-IA Connect runs locally, there is no transit of your PLC project data over untrusted networks. The MCP server communicates with TIA Portal via the local Openness API — no internet path touches your engineering data.
SR 5.1 — Network Segmentation
T-IA Connect's local architecture naturally supports OT/IT zone separation. The MCP server runs in your engineering zone. If you use cloud AI APIs, only sanitized prompts (not raw project files) traverse the network boundary — and even that can be eliminated with local models.
SR 6.1 — Audit Log Accessibility
All MCP tool calls — block reads, code generation, compilation triggers — are logged locally. This provides the access audit trail required for IEC 62443 compliance without sending operational data to external logging services.
SL 2 / SL 3 — Robustness Against Malicious Actors
On-premise deployment eliminates the cloud provider as a threat vector. With local model inference (Ollama, vLLM), even the AI inference itself is air-gapped. Adversaries cannot reach your AI-assisted workflow through internet-facing services.
Security Architecture: On-Premise by Design
Three deployment modes, all keeping your data under your control
Mode 1: BYOK Cloud AI
Use Claude, GPT-4o, or Gemini with your own API key. T-IA Connect sends only your prompts and relevant context — not raw project files. Your key, your account, your data agreement directly with the AI provider.
Mode 2: Local Model Inference
Run Llama 3, Qwen 2.5 Coder, or Mistral locally via Ollama or vLLM. Zero internet traffic. The AI model runs on your hardware, the MCP server runs locally, TIA Portal runs locally. Fully air-gappable.
Mode 3: On-Premise LLM Server
Deploy a shared GPU inference server on your plant network. Engineers connect to it via the local network — like an internal AI service. No data ever leaves the facility. Supports multi-user environments with centralized model governance.
Cloud AI vs On-Premise AI for Industrial Security
A direct comparison for OT security architects and compliance teams
| Security Criterion | Cloud AI (SaaS Copilot) | T-IA Connect (On-Premise) |
|---|---|---|
| Data Residency | External servers (provider country) | Your network / your hardware only |
| IEC 62443 Zone Control | Breaks zone boundaries by design | Fully compatible with zone/conduit model |
| NIS2 Compliance | Requires extensive DPA and risk assessment | Data never leaves your perimeter |
| Offline Operation | Requires internet connection | Full offline with local models |
| Audit Trail | Provider-controlled logs | Local logs, your retention policy |
| Supply Chain Risk | Exposure via provider breach | No external dependency for data |
| Air-Gap Compatible | No | Yes (with local models) |
| Data Processing Agreement | Required with AI provider | Not required — data stays local |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is T-IA Connect certified to IEC 62443?
T-IA Connect is not itself a certified IEC 62443 product — the standard applies to your overall industrial control system, not individual tools. However, T-IA Connect's on-premise architecture is designed to be compatible with IEC 62443 zone/conduit models: it does not create unauthorized data flows out of your OT network, it provides local audit logging, and it can operate fully offline with local AI models. Your security assessment team can validate this in your specific environment.
Can I use T-IA Connect on an air-gapped OT network?
Yes, fully. T-IA Connect's MCP server runs locally on your engineering workstation. Combined with a local LLM inference server (Ollama, vLLM, llama.cpp) on your plant network, there is zero internet dependency. Engineers get AI-assisted PLC programming with no data crossing the air-gap boundary. This is the recommended configuration for defense, nuclear, and critical infrastructure environments.
What data does T-IA Connect send to external servers?
In BYOK cloud mode: only the prompts and context you explicitly include in your AI conversation — not raw TIA Portal project files. In local model mode: nothing. The MCP server communicates exclusively with your local TIA Portal instance and your designated AI endpoint. T-IA Connect itself (the license management backend) only receives your license key for authentication — no engineering data.
How does T-IA Connect compare to Siemens TIA Portal Copilot from a security standpoint?
Siemens TIA Portal Copilot (V20+) is a cloud SaaS service — your PLC code is sent to Siemens servers for processing. This creates a data flow out of your OT network that must be assessed and approved under IEC 62443 and NIS2 frameworks. T-IA Connect keeps everything local by default. For organizations with strict OT security policies, T-IA Connect is the compliant alternative.