A Study on Improving the Security Vulnerabilities of Modbus-Based SCADA Control Systems

Modbus 기반 SCADA 제어 시스템의 보안 취약성 향상에 관한 연구

SCADA control systems and protocols are developed based on reliability, availability, and speed but with no or little attention paid to security. Specifically in Modbus protocol, there are inherent security vulnerabilities in their design. The lack of common security mechanisms in the protocol such as authentication, confidentiality and integrity must be addressed. In this paper, security vulnerabilities of Modbus-based SCADA controls systems will be studied. An in-depth analysis of the message frame formats being sent between master and slave will be discussed to expose the security vulnerabilities. This will enable SCADA users to find ways to fix the security flaws of the protocol and design mitigation strategies to reduce the impact of the possible attacks. Security mechanisms are recommended to further enhance the security of SCADA control systems.