Performing SCADA HMI Security Assessment

When to Use

• When assessing the security posture of HMI systems in SCADA/DCS environments
• When evaluating web-based HMI interfaces for common web vulnerabilities
• When auditing HMI authentication, authorization, and session management
• When testing communication security between HMIs and PLCs/RTUs
• When preparing for IEC 62443 or NERC CIP compliance assessments

Do not use for testing HMIs in active production without a maintenance window and rollback plan, for PLC-level protocol analysis (see performing-s7comm-protocol-security-analysis), or for general web application testing on non-OT systems.

Prerequisites

• HMI system inventory with vendor, version, and network configuration details
• Lab or test environment mirroring production HMI setup (preferred for active testing)
• Authorization from plant operations for testing during maintenance windows
• NIST SP 800-82 and IEC 62443 security requirements documentation
• Network capture capability on HMI-to-PLC communication segment