Interview

“Our Position with Respect to Cybersecurity is Still Too Weak”

Norbert Pohlmann is a Professor of Computer Science for distributed systems and information security and head of the Institute for Internet Security at the University of Applied Sciences in Gelsenkirchen, Westphalia.

He explains that building automation companies urgently need to upgrade their security technology to the state-of-the-art. Cybercrime is increasing and becoming more and more professional. Attacks against IT systems and complex IT structures, such as occur in buildings, are occurring more and more frequently and represent an ever-greater threat.

IT crime is undergoing increasing industrialization and attaining levels of professionalism never before seen. How does this affect buildings, and, more specifically, how are attacks on building automation systems carried out?

Norbert Pohlmann: It’s an unfortunate truth that any information technology can be attacked. There’s no such thing as 100 percent security. Buildings today have complex IT structures that control heating, lighting, blinds, elevators and other systems. All areas can be affected.