Not only is it Manufacturing Month, but October also is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month. To mark the occasion, Smart Industry Managing Editor Scott Achelpohl recruited Joe Anderson of Ohio-based TechSolve to talk about how robust cyber defenses can start with up-to-date password practices and policies.

Anderson is a big “get” for Smart Industry—an IT and info security pro with over 25 years of industry experience, possessing several cybersecurity certifications. His company, among other IT services, helps small manufacturers (TechSolve is part of the Manufacturing Extension Partnership in Ohio) tackle cybersecurity compliance challenges and risk management.

For manufacturers and the shop floor, cybersecurity and secure OT and IT requires constant vigilance. One of the most common-sense strategies for this is password security—and for lots of companies, mandatory policies relating to passwords often become necessary. Look at examples like Clorox recently: A breach, any breach, can cost millions in “ransom” to cyberattackers and in production downtime. And passwords are often easily hacked.