Area Manufacturers visit BMW to learn more about Cyber Security in the Digital Age

Concerned manufacturers from around the Upstate descended upon the BMW Zentrum in Spartanburg County last week to hear a panel of experts discuss the emerging threat of cyber attacks on manufacturing supply lines.

Hosted by BMW and moderated by the U.S. Commercial Service, GreerWalker’s Jon Hightower and Gallagher Insurance’s Jennifer Bolling sat alongside Cyber Security Attorney, Doug Kim, and Acclaim Advanced Manufacturing CEO, Jason Premo, to examine the current state of cyber threats in the manufacturing space before answering questions from more than 100 sector professionals.

In an interview last month, Premo told South Carolina Manufacturing  “experts place the number of professional hackers to over 300,000.”

“In places like Russia, China, Eastern Europe and North Korea, hacking is a growth industry,” he said.

A study by the National Cyber Security Alliance showed nearly a third of companies impacted by cyber attacks lost a whopping 20 to 40 percent of their customers as a result. In addition, 60 percent of the small business breached by attack are forced to close their doors within six months.

Companies wanting to join one of the larger OEM’s will need to not only safeguard their digital supply lines from cyber threats, they will also need to protect themselves from invaders.

BMW Spokesperson, Steve Wilson, said cyber security on supply chains has become critical in a digital world.

A cyber hack today not only causes massive scale interruption,  “it can randomly disrupt the logistical chain in both quality and quantity that a company in one geographic area operates at a higher cost,” he said. “Eventually, they are so noncompetitive that a takeover from another company is easier.”

NOTE: Manufacturers interested in learning more about what they can do to protect themselves and ensure a move UP the supply chain, can reach out to the professionals at GreerWalker and Gallagher for their game plan today!