Industrial Control System (ICS).

An umbrella term for systems that automate and supervise industrial processes, including SCADA, DCS, PLCs, RTUs, and safety controllers. It belongs to the OT / ICS / IoT category of cybersecurity.

An umbrella term for systems that automate and supervise industrial processes, including SCADA, DCS, PLCs, RTUs, and safety controllers.

Industrial Control Systems (ICS) are the combined hardware, software, and networks that automate and supervise industrial processes in sectors such as manufacturing, energy, water, oil and gas, and transportation. They include SCADA platforms, distributed control systems, PLCs, RTUs, IEDs, engineering workstations, historians, and safety systems. ICS components were historically isolated and rely on legacy protocols like Modbus or DNP3 with weak or absent authentication, so today's IT/OT convergence creates significant exposure. Attacks on ICS can cause outages, equipment damage, environmental harm, and risk to human life, which is why frameworks such as IEC 62443 and NIST SP 800-82 emphasize segmentation, monitoring, secure remote access, and rigorous change management.

Defences for Industrial Control System (ICS) typically combine technical controls and operational practices, as detailed in the full definition above.

Common alternative names include: ICS, Industrial automation and control system.