Cobot attack: a security assessment exemplified by a specific collaborative robot

Abstract

The market for cyber-physical systems, such as collaborative robots (cobots), continues to grow fast. Primarily, this is driven by megatrends, such as smart factories, which include interconnected machines and human-robot interaction. On the one hand, these new technologies lead to flexible manufacturing and a higher level of automation. On the other hand, however, it drives the demand for the safety and security of the systems, as the potential of harm to human beings is increased in such collaborative scenarios. Therefore, in the case of a cobot, increased awareness of cyber security aspects and their relations to the system’s safety is advisable. In this paper, a security assessment for the Franka Emika Panda has been performed. For this specific c obot, potential a ttack s urfaces and t heir possible i mpacts on s afety-relevant parameters a re a nalyzed. Furthermore, the defined attack surfaces of Panda are tested in a systematic penetration test based on the Open Source Security Testing Methodology (OSSTM) and the OWASP testing guide. Different vulnerabilities are found, of which some could have a safety impact on the human worker. Finally, for each of the findings, countermeasures are provided to prevent a possible cyber-attack.