Field
Motor Controller / MCC
Switchgear and intelligent starters that energise and protect motors.
High criticalityLevel 1 – Level 0
What it does
Starts, stops and protects motors, often reporting status over an industrial network.
Typically locatedMotor control centres.
At a glance
PurdueLevel 1 – Level 0
CategoryField
Protocolsethernet-ip, modbus-tcp, profibus
Talks toPLC, Energy monitoring systems
Common vendorsRockwell Automation (ArmorStart), Schneider Electric (TeSys), ABB, Siemens (SIMOCODE)
Why should I care?
Motor Controller / MCC sits at Level 1 – Level 0. Compromise here is not just a data problem — it changes what the physical process does or what operators can see and control.
Common security problems
- Network-capable starters left with default settings
- Rarely inventoried
If it is compromised
- Unexpected motor starts/stops affecting the process
What to monitor
- Command sources
- Trip and overload events
How to defend it
- Include intelligent starters in the asset inventory
- Cell-level segmentation
Related