What is Legacy Equipment?
Legacy equipment is any technical equipment still in use despite being outdated, no longer supported or in production. Some examples include outdated servers, computers, networking devices, or specialised industrial equipment.
Why is Legacy Equipment Still Used?
Organisations and individuals may continue to use legacy equipment for various reasons, even when newer options are available.
Cost of Replacement
New equipment is often expensive, and transitioning from one system to another takes a lot of time.
Specialised Requirements
Some industries, such as manufacturing or healthcare, rely on equipment that has no modern equivalent or that is tightly integrated into their operations. Replacing such equipment can be impossible.
You can read about a similar situation with a UK-based healthcare organisation here.
Compatibility Issues
Newer hardware or systems may not be compatible with other software or equipment, leading to potential downtime during an upgrade.
While these are all valid reasons, understanding the risks associated with continuing to use legacy equipment is important.
Security Risks Associated with Legacy Equipment
The most significant issue with legacy equipment is the security risks it poses. As technology advances, older systems become increasingly vulnerable to cyber threats, and legacy equipment often lacks the necessary defences to withstand modern attacks.
Unpatched Vulnerabilities
Legacy equipment often runs outdated operating systems or software that no longer receives security updates or patches. This makes it easy for cybercriminals to exploit known vulnerabilities and gain unauthorised access to systems.
To learn more about the dangers of outdated operating systems, click here.
Increased Exposure to Cyberattacks
As older systems are no longer supported, they become prime targets for hackers looking for easy entry points. Once compromised, a legacy system can be an access point to the rest of the network, leading to widespread damage.
Lack of Modern Security Features
Legacy hardware is often incompatible with newer security tools, such as advanced encryption protocols, firewalls, or intrusion detection systems. This makes it harder to protect sensitive data, increasing the risk of data breaches.
Insufficient Logging and Monitoring
Older systems may lack robust logging and monitoring capabilities, making it difficult to detect suspicious activity or identify the source of a breach in real-time. This delays response times and increases the potential damage from an attack.
Regulatory Non-Compliance
In many industries, regulations require up-to-date security measures to protect data and systems. Using legacy equipment that cannot meet these security standards puts companies at risk of violating laws like GDPR, HIPAA, or PCI-DSS, which can result in severe fines and legal repercussions.
The Risks of Using Legacy Equipment
Constantly relying on legacy equipment presents several other challenges besides security risks. These issues can negatively impact a business’s efficiency, productivity, and bottom line.
Increased Maintenance Costs
As legacy equipment ages, it often requires more frequent repairs and maintenance. Replacement parts can be difficult to find, making repairs time-consuming and costly. Over time, the cost of maintaining outdated systems can far outweigh the expense of upgrading to newer technology.
Decreased Productivity
Legacy systems may not be compatible with modern software, leading to inefficiencies and workarounds that slow down processes. Employees may struggle to complete tasks on outdated systems, resulting in a loss of productivity.
Limited Functionality
Older hardware often lacks the capabilities of newer models, restricting an organisation’s ability to adopt new tools and technologies. This can hinder innovation and make it difficult to stay competitive in industries where technological advancement is important.
Vendor Support Issues
Manufacturers may discontinue support for older models as equipment ages, leaving organisations without critical resources like patches, repairs, or technical support. If issues arise, this can result in downtime or service disruptions.
Regulatory Compliance Challenges
Some industries require up-to-date systems to meet compliance standards. Outdated equipment may not meet these regulatory requirements, putting companies at risk of fines or other penalties.
What to do When Using Legacy Equipment is Inevitable
In some industries, such as healthcare or manufacturing, completely replacing legacy equipment isn’t always possible.
Specialised, albeit outdated, machines may be critical to operations, and their replacements might not be readily available—this is when non-perfect cybersecurity really comes into its own.
So, here’s a breakdown of some ways you can maintain a relatively high level of security whilst using legacy equipment.
Isolate Legacy Systems
Segmenting legacy systems from more modern systems limits network access, reducing the risk of a breach spreading throughout the entire network.
You can read more about isolating legacy systems here.
Layered Security Measures
To help safeguard older systems, implement additional security layers, such as firewalls, intrusion detection systems, and network monitoring. This strategy is also referred to as defence-in-depth.
Regular Audits
Perform frequent security audits, or at the very least, annual penetration tests, to identify vulnerabilities and weaknesses in legacy systems. These audits can help prevent potential security breaches before they occur.
Limit Access
Restrict access to legacy equipment to only those who need it. Reducing the number of users interacting with these systems lowers the risk of human error or malicious activity.
Legacy Equipment—Common Misconceptions
There are a few misconceptions about legacy equipment that can lead organisations to delay upgrades—which can be very dangerous. Let’s debunk some of them:
“If it’s not broken, don’t fix it.”
Just because legacy equipment still functions doesn’t mean it’s secure or efficient. The hidden risks of unpatched vulnerabilities and security gaps often outweigh the perceived reliability.
“Upgrading is too costly.”
While the upfront cost of upgrading can be high, maintaining outdated equipment can be even more expensive in the long run due to increased downtime, maintenance, and potential security incidents.
Conclusion
Legacy equipment may still serve a purpose in some industries, but its risks and challenges—particularly regarding security—are significant.
The lack of security updates, compliance issues, and software incompatibility make legacy equipment a severe problem for any organisation that continues to use it. Sometimes, it’s better to just move on.
That being said, some industries cannot move on even if they want to, and for those industries, defence-in-depth, isolation, and regular audits are their best defence against cyber threats.