Honeywell Technologies released its 2026 Operational Technology (OT) Cybersecurity Benchmark Report, revealing a disconnect between how organizations perceive the maturity of their cybersecurity programs and their actual operational readiness across critical infrastructure. Based on a survey of more than 600 global industrial cybersecurity leaders, the report found that 88% described their OT cybersecurity programs as mature, while only 21% reported having a complete inventory of their OT assets.
The report discovered that organizations experienced an average of 16.2 hours of downtime from their most significant cybersecurity incidents, resulting in losses of up to $500,000 per hour. Additionally, 99% of respondents expect AI to affect OT security within the next two to three years, while just 23% reported using autonomous or agentic operation for threat detection.
“As cyber threats increasingly impact physical operations, resilience depends on extending cybersecurity across every connected system that supports uptime and business continuity,” said Mr. Jim Masso, President and CEO of Honeywell Technologies Process Automation. Organizations can no longer afford to have this visibility gap.”
Despite widespread confidence in cybersecurity programs, companies still show significant gaps in visibility across operational environments. Just 33% of organizations surveyed have fully integrated OT into a centralized security operations center, while only 20% continuously monitor connected IoT devices such as cameras and sensors. The survey also revealed several significant threat findings by industry:
- Energy & Utilities: 91% of energy and utilities respondents reported experiencing a significant OT cybersecurity incident in the past 12 months
- Maritime: 87% of maritime respondents reported experiencing a significant OT cybersecurity incident in the past 12 months
- Oil & Gas: 54% of energy and utilities respondents reported experiencing a significant OT cybersecurity incident in the past 12 months.
- Healthcare: Only 19% of healthcare respondents say facility and building systems are fully integrated into cybersecurity monitoring and protection
The survey’s findings suggest that organizations with stronger visibility are four times better positioned to identify threats, respond to incidents and restore operations quicker. Respondents indicated cyber incidents are no longer viewed solely as technology events, but operational issues that can affect employee safety, customer service, and production continuity.
The report surveyed more than 600 cybersecurity risk, compliance and operations leaders across critical infrastructure sectors, including energy, oil and gas, healthcare, maritime and manufacturing, with participation across the Americas, EMEA and APAC.
Covered By: SMART SOLUTIONS WORLD / Honeywell
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