The CMMC Level 2.0 deadline is 10/31. Get compliant now!
Contact Us
Contact Us
Managed IT Services for Manufacturing - Corsica Technologies
In this article:
Manufacturing snapshots
Threat landscape 2025
Compliance & governance
Key controls & reference architecture
Operational KPIs to track
90-day action plan
How Corsica helps
Free Cybersecurity RFP Template
Download Now
Managed IT Services for Manufacturing - Corsica Technologies

Manufacturing IT and Cybersecurity: 90-Day Action Plan

Executive Summary 

Cyber risk for manufacturers continues to intensify in 2025. Ransomware remains the most disruptive threat to operational continuity and supply chains, while regulatory expectations and third‑party risk pressures are rising. This report distills the latest industry intelligence and maps a pragmatic 90‑day plan that organizations can execute with Corsica Technologies as a strategic partner. 

Key points:
  • Manufacturing remains the #1 most-attacked industry, accounting for the majority of industrial ransomware activity. 
  • Manufacturing faces rapid growth in ransomware and phishing, driven by ecosystem complexity, project-based work, and supply-chain complexity. 
  • Compliance momentum continues: CMMC requirements are expected to begin appearing in DoD contracts in late 2025. 
  • Attackers increasingly favor data theft and double extortion over pure encryption, raising legal and reputational exposure. 
  • Organizations that adopt 24/7 SOC-as-a-Service, MDR/EDR, immutable backups, and zero‑trust segmentation show faster containment and reduced business impact. 

The state of cyber and IT in manufacturing

 
  • OT/ICS exposure remains high due to legacy equipment and flat network designs. 
  • Supply chain dependencies and just‑in‑time operations magnify downtime costs. 
  • Common footholds: compromised credentials, phishing, exposed remote access, and third‑party tooling. 
  • Top impacts: production downtime, IP theft (designs/BOM), and contractual penalties. 
  • Project‑based operations, dispersed sites, and BYOD increase attack surface. 
  • Email compromise and invoice fraud are prevalent due to subcontractor billing flows. 
  • Cloud collaboration introduces data governance challenges. 
  • Impacts include payment diversion, project delays, and sensitive plan/specification leakage. 
Industrial ransomware share by sector Dragos, Q1 2025

Figure 1. Industrial ransomware share by sector (Dragos, Q1 2025). 

 

What does the manufacturing threat landscape look like in 2025? 

 
  • Ransomware pressure remains elevated; manufacturing targeted heavily for operational leverage. 
  • Shift toward data theft and extortion even when encryption fails or is bypassed. 
  • Email-based attacks (BEC, vendor/email compromise) persist across project and supply chain workflows. 
  • Exploitation of vulnerable edge devices and remote access continues to be a common initial vector. 
  • Adversaries increasingly use automation/AI to speed reconnaissance and payload customization. 

 

What compliance & governance is required?

 
  • CMMC: Final rulemaking is advancing with contract clauses expected to begin appearing in late 2025. Contractors should align to NIST SP 800‑171 requirements now. 
  • Backups, incident response, and tabletop exercises are increasingly required in cyber insurance and customer contracts. 

 

manufacturing company AI case study

 

What controls should be enforced? 

 

The following layered controls balance prevention, detection, and recovery while supporting compliance obligations: 

  • Identity-first security: MFA, conditional access, privileged access management, and least privilege. 
  • Endpoint protection: EDR with 24/7 monitoring and rapid containment (isolation/quarantine). 
  • Network segmentation: Zero-trust micro‑segmentation between IT, OT, and cloud; restrict remote access. 
  • Email & collaboration security: Advanced phishing protection, DMARC, and DLP for file sharing. 
  • Backup & recovery: 3‑2‑1 strategy with immutable storage, offline copies, and regular restore testing. 
  • Vulnerability & patch management: Prioritize exploitable flaws on internet‑facing systems and crown‑jewel assets. 
  • Third‑party risk: Access control, contract clauses, and continuous monitoring of critical vendors. 

 

What are the key operational KPIs to track? 

 
  • Mean time to detect/contain (MTTD/MTTC) and dwell time. 
  • Phishing failure rate and reporting rate. 
  • Patch coverage and time to remediate critical vulnerabilities. 
  • Backup integrity: successful test restores and RTO/RPO performance. 
  • Endpoint and identity coverage (MFA/EDR) across workforce and contractors. 

What does a 90‑day action plan look like? 

 
  1. Run a rapid risk & controls assessment in collaboration with your cybersecurity service provider; identify gaps by function. 
  2. Harden identity: enforce MFA for all users, restrict legacy protocols, and implement conditional access. 
  3. Deploy or tune EDR with 24/7 monitoring; define automated isolation playbooks for high‑severity alerts. 
  4. Implement least‑privilege access and network segmentation for OT and critical systems. 
  5. Establish immutable/offline backups and validate restore procedures with a live test. 
  6. Roll out monthly phishing simulations and awareness micro‑training for field and back‑office staff. 
  7. Document incident response plan; conduct a tabletop exercise with executive sponsors and key vendors. 
  8. For DoD suppliers: baseline against NIST SP 800‑171 and prepare for CMMC Level 2 assessments. 

 

  

How Corsica Technologies can help 

Corsica pairs managed IT with comprehensive cybersecurity operations to deliver outcomes—uptime, resilience, and compliance—through predictable monthly pricing and unlimited service consumption. 

 

Business Outcome 

Corsica Capability 

What You Get 

24/7 Threat Detection & Response 

SOC‑as‑a‑Service (includes MDR/EDR) 

Continuous monitoring, rapid triage, isolation & remediation 

Operational Continuity 

Managed IT Support 

Unlimited help desk, patching, endpoint management, roadmap alignment 

Resilience & Recovery 

Backup/DR & Incident Response 

Immutable backups, disaster recovery planning, post‑incident forensics 

Compliance Readiness 

CMMC Alignment 

Gap assessments, policy templates, evidence prep, audit support 

Email & Collaboration Security 

Advanced Email Security & DLP 

Phishing protection, DMARC, data loss prevention controls 

 

References 

  • Dragos: Industrial Ransomware Analysis Q1 2025 
  • IBM X‑Force Threat Intelligence Index 2025 
  • Zscaler ThreatLabz Ransomware Report 2025 (U.S. share and sector data) 
  • DoD CMMC Program updates (Federal Register & DoD CIO) 
  • Corsica Technologies services pages (SOC‑as‑a‑Service, Managed IT, MDR) 

Ready to take the next step with manufacturing IT & cybersecurity?

Contact us today to start your transformation.

Contact Us Now →

Manufacturing IT Support Consulting
In this article:
Manufacturing snapshots
Threat landscape 2025
Compliance & governance
Key controls & reference architecture
Operational KPIs to track
90-day action plan
How Corsica helps
Free Cybersecurity RFP Template
Download Now

Ready to talk to an expert?

We’ll respond within 1 business day, or you can grab time on our calendar.