Using SpiraTeam to Support IEC 62443 Compliance in Industrial Automation and Control Systems
Executive Summary
Industrial automation and control systems (IACS) are increasingly targeted by cyber threats that can compromise safety, reliability, and business continuity. To address these risks, the IEC 62443 family of standards provides a framework for implementing security across the entire lifecycle of industrial systems.
Inflectra’s SpiraTeam offers an integrated application lifecycle management (ALM) platform that enables organizations to implement, monitor, and demonstrate compliance with IEC 62443. By centralizing requirements, risk assessments, test management, and traceability, SpiraTeam ensures that security measures are systematically planned, executed, and verified throughout the development and operation of industrial automation systems.
Introduction
IEC 62443 defines security requirements for IACS, addressing both organizational processes and technical system design. The standard requires evidence of compliance, including traceability from security requirements through risk assessments, design artifacts, verification, and operational controls.
SpiraTeam provides a structured platform for managing these artifacts in a unified environment. This enables engineering, security, and compliance teams to work collaboratively while ensuring that all activities are documented and auditable.
Key IEC 62443 Challenges
- Complex, Multi-Stakeholder Environments: Collaboration across IT, OT, engineering, and compliance teams.
- Lifecycle Integration: Security must be considered during design, implementation, validation, deployment, and operation.
- Traceability and Documentation: Regulators and auditors require documented evidence linking requirements, risks, and verification activities.
- Change Management: Systems evolve over decades, requiring careful management of updates and patches without introducing vulnerabilities.
SpiraTeam Capabilities Aligned with IEC 62443
1. Requirements and Security Level Management
- Manage IEC 62443-derived security requirements within SpiraTeam’s requirements module.
- Map requirements to IEC 62443 security levels (SL1–SL4).
- Use custom attributes to classify requirements (e.g., foundational requirements, system requirements).
2. Threat and Risk Assessments
- Capture threat models and risk assessments within SpiraTeam.
- Link identified risks to mitigating requirements and controls.
- Use dashboards to monitor open risks and mitigation status.
3. Design and Configuration Management
- Maintain baselines of system design documents and configurations.
- Support IEC 62443 requirements for secure development and change control.
- Provide version history and approvals for all controlled artifacts.
4. Test Lifecycle and Validation
- Define verification and validation tests against IEC 62443 security requirements.
- Automate execution with SpiraTest or integrate with test automation frameworks.
- Provide full traceability from test cases to requirements and risks.
5. Audit and Compliance Reporting
- Generate reports showing traceability from IEC 62443 requirements through implementation and test results.
- Provide auditors with evidence of risk assessments, mitigation activities, and validation results.
- Support electronic signatures and approvals for regulated environments.
6. Change and Incident Management
- Use SpiraTeam’s workflows to track changes, vulnerabilities, and incidents.
- Link corrective actions to specific IEC 62443 requirements and risks.
- Maintain a defensible audit trail of security-related decisions.
Example Traceability Flow
- IEC 62443 requirement: “System must provide role-based access control.”
- Captured in SpiraTeam as a requirement with SL2 classification.
- Linked to risk entry: “Unauthorized access to operator console.”
- Linked to design artifact: “RBAC implemented in control system software v2.1.”
- Linked to test case: “Verify that user accounts enforce least-privilege roles.”
- Test results show compliance; audit report automatically generated.
Benefits of Using SpiraTeam for IEC 62443
- Integrated Compliance: Security requirements, risks, and tests managed in one platform.
- Audit-Ready: Automated traceability reports for regulators and auditors.
- Reduced Risk: Continuous visibility into security gaps and mitigation status.
- Efficiency: Eliminates silos across engineering, IT/OT security, and compliance teams.
- Scalability: Supports projects ranging from component-level development to enterprise-wide IACS programs.
Conclusion
Compliance with IEC 62443 requires rigorous lifecycle management of security requirements, risks, tests, and changes. SpiraTeam provides an end-to-end ALM solution that not only supports technical compliance but also enables organizations to improve collaboration, reduce risk, and streamline audit readiness.
By adopting SpiraTeam, organizations in the industrial automation space can ensure that their systems meet the highest levels of cybersecurity assurance while maintaining efficiency and operational reliability.
