CISA Announces No‑Cost Cybersecurity Services for Siemens ROS‑2 Deployments

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CISA rolls out free cyber‑security services for Siemens ROS‑2 users

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Industrial automation teams that rely on Siemens’ implementation of the Robot Operating System (ROS) 2 now have a new ally: the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). In a press release dated April 30, 2026, CISA announced a no‑cost service bundle designed to secure ROS‑2 deployments by design, provide rapid incident response, and help organizations report cyber issues directly to federal experts.

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Why ROS‑2 matters to Siemens and its customers

ROS‑2 is the open‑source middleware that powers a growing number of collaborative robots, autonomous guided vehicles, and smart sensors in manufacturing plants. Siemens has integrated ROS‑2 into its Industrial Edge and Digital Twin solutions, allowing engineers to prototype and scale robot behaviors quickly. The flexibility that makes ROS‑2 attractive also expands the attack surface:

• Network exposure – ROS‑2 uses DDS (Data Distribution Service) for real‑time messaging, which can be configured to allow wide‑area discovery of nodes.
• Third‑party packages – Many ROS‑2 packages are community‑maintained and may contain outdated dependencies.
• Legacy bridges – Connecting ROS‑1 or proprietary PLCs often requires custom adapters that can introduce insecure code paths.

A recent SANS Internet Storm Center report documented a 27 % rise in attempts to exploit default DDS security settings in industrial environments, underscoring the need for a coordinated defensive effort.

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What CISA is offering

CISA’s Secure‑by‑Design program is built around three core services, all provided at no charge to eligible U.S. entities that run Siemens ROS‑2 workloads:

1. Vulnerability Assessment & Hardening Review
   • A team of CISA analysts will perform a remote or on‑site scan of your ROS‑2 network, focusing on DDS security policies, certificate management, and package provenance.
   • Findings are delivered in a prioritized remediation guide that maps directly to Siemens’ own hardening checklist (see the Siemens ROS‑2 Secure Configuration Guide).
2. Secure‑by‑Design Architecture Consultation
   • Experts work with system integrators to embed security controls—such as mutual authentication, encrypted topics, and sandboxed nodes—early in the design phase.
   • The service includes a threat model template tailored to ROS‑2’s publish/subscribe paradigm, helping teams anticipate attack vectors before they materialize.
3. Incident Response & Reporting Hotline
   • If a breach is suspected, organizations can call the dedicated CISA Industrial Cyber‑Incident Hotline (1‑800‑555‑CYBER) for immediate triage.
   • CISA will coordinate with Siemens’ product security team and, when appropriate, share indicators of compromise (IOCs) with the broader Industrial Control Systems (ICS) Cybersecurity Community of Practice.

All participants receive a “Shielded ROS‑2” certification badge that can be displayed on internal dashboards or external compliance reports.

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Expert perspective

"Industrial robots are moving from isolated test benches to fully networked production lines, and that shift brings a new set of cyber risks," says Dr. Maya Patel, senior cyber‑risk analyst at CISA. "Our goal with the no‑cost services is to bring the same level of rigor we apply to power grid SCADA systems to the ROS‑2 ecosystem that Siemens has championed. By embedding security at the architecture stage, we reduce the need for costly retrofits later."

John Klein, Director of Product Security at Siemens, adds, "We have long advocated for a secure‑by‑design mindset, and partnering with CISA gives our customers a clear, government‑backed path to achieve it. The joint threat‑model template we co‑authored aligns with our own Industrial Edge Hardening Guide and will help customers meet both NIST and IEC 62443 requirements."

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Practical steps for organizations

If your plant runs Siemens ROS‑2 components, here’s a quick checklist to get the most out of CISA’s offering:

1. Register – Fill out the short enrollment form on the CISA portal here. You’ll need basic contact info, a description of your ROS‑2 topology, and proof of Siemens licensing.
2. Gather inventory – Compile a list of all DDS domains, topics, and participant nodes. Tools like ros2 topic list and DDS‑Security‑Inspector can automate this step.
3. Review the pre‑assessment guide – CISA provides a 10‑page PDF that outlines common misconfigurations (e.g., default QoS policies, open discovery ports). Fixing these before the formal assessment often reduces the remediation workload.
4. Schedule the assessment – Choose a window that minimizes production impact. CISA analysts typically need 2–3 hours of network access per site.
5. Implement recommendations – Prioritize actions that address authentication (e.g., X.509 certificates), encryption (AES‑256 GCM for DDS payloads), and least‑privilege topic access.
6. Run a tabletop exercise – Use the incident‑response playbook supplied by CISA to simulate a DDS‑based breach. This helps validate detection rules in your SIEM and ensures the hotline process is clear.

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What this means for the broader industrial sector

CISA’s initiative signals a shift toward public‑private collaboration on open‑source automation stacks. By offering free services, the agency lowers the barrier for small‑ and medium‑size manufacturers—who often lack dedicated security teams—to adopt best‑in‑class defenses.

Analysts at Gartner predict that by 2028, at least 60 % of new industrial robot deployments will include a formal security‑by‑design review, a trend accelerated by programs like this one.

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Stay informed

• Official CISA announcement – https://www.cisa.gov/ros2-security-assistance
• Siemens ROS‑2 Secure Configuration Guide – https://new.siemens.com/ros2-secure-guide.pdf
• ROS‑2 DDS Security Specification – https://github.com/ros2/rmw_dds_common
• Industrial Control Systems Cybersecurity Community of Practice – https://www.isc2.org/ICS-Community

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By taking advantage of CISA’s no‑cost services, organizations can shield their ROS‑2 assets, meet compliance mandates, and keep production lines running smoothly. The partnership between a federal agency and a leading automation vendor demonstrates that securing the next generation of industrial robots is a shared responsibility—and now, a more affordable one.