For many companies in label and packaging printing, cybersecurity still feels like an IT topic – something handled by specialists, far removed from daily production.
That perception is outdated.
Cybersecurity now has a direct impact on operational continuity, financial stability and customer trust. Industry guidance, including the FEFCO Cyber Security Handbook, makes clear that cyber incidents can disrupt supply chains, delay production and damage long-term customer relationships.
In increasingly connected production environments, those risks extend beyond office systems and onto the production floor, including the ink room.
The hidden risks on the production floor
Printing operations rely heavily on Operational Technology (OT) – from presses and finishing machines to ink dispensing and formulation systems. These systems ensure efficiency, repeatability and quality. But since the 1990s, vulnerabilities have gradually increased, with the introduction of standard operating software, and connections of machines to corporate networks.
With new digital capabilities come more interfaces that must be secured against.
A cyber incident can:
- disrupt ink supply and dispensing processes
- impact colour consistency and print quality
- delay production and deliveries
- cause costly downtime
A key challenge is that many OT systems are long lifecycle assets, often with limited updates, increasing exposure to cyber risks.
The connected ink room: the overlooked IT-OT entry point
A modern ink room is no longer simply a space where inks are stored and dispensed. It is a data-driven production environment in which dispensing systems, weighing equipment, control PCs, software and production data work together.
ERP, MIS or MES systems can send job information directly to the ink room. Ink management software can calculate required quantities, manage return inks, record batch information and support reporting and traceability.
This places the ink room at the intersection of Information Technology and Operational Technology.
From an IT perspective, the system may exchange planning, recipe and production data with ERP, MIS, MES, colour-formulation or cloud-based platforms.
From an OT perspective, the same environment controls physical processes such as dispensing, mixing, weighing and colour preparation.
That combination makes the ink room a critical but sometimes overlooked cybersecurity entry point. A successful attack may affect not only business data, but also production continuity, product quality and operational efficiency.
Where vulnerabilities can arise
Typical risks include outdated operating systems, unsupported software, insufficient patching, weak user controls and inadequate network separation between office and production systems.
Connections with production-planning systems, cloud services, supplier platforms and remote-support tools also require careful management. These connections may be necessary, but they must be controlled, documented and assigned to the correct responsible parties.
Wi-Fi can create additional exposure when it is introduced without suitable configuration and oversight. Remote access can do the same when authentication, permissions and logging are weak.
The issue is not connectivity itself. Connected systems deliver clear operational benefits. The risk comes from unmanaged connectivity.
Cybersecurity as a production responsibility
Protecting the ink room should therefore form part of a printer’s wider production-continuity strategy. This starts with understanding how data enters and leaves the system, which connections are necessary, who has access and how production can be restored following an incident.
Cybersecurity does not require isolating every machine or abandoning digitalisation. It requires a controlled approach that balances security, level of support and production requirements.
In the second part of this series, we examine the practical measures printers and converters can use to protect connected ink-room systems, including network segmentation, secure remote access, user permissions, monitoring, backups, endpoint protection and lifecycle management.
Want to learn more? Subscribe to the InkConnection newsletter for future articles in this series or contact our team at info@gsedispensing.com or +31 575 568 080 to discuss your system’s lifecycle and cybersecurity requirements.
