Press Release

TÜV SÜD holds professional technical forum on "information security" and "functional safety"

TÜV SÜD successfully held an information security and functional safety forum on Nov. 12 in Shanghai. Focusing on the two important security topics, the forum present in-depth discussions on TISAX, the ISO/SAE 21434 standard, challenges in information security in the smart new energy industry, the IEC 61508 standard, the role of functional safety in intelligent network, etc. It aimed at interpreting cutting-edge regulations, standards and industry information, thus helping companies calmly cope with new challenges in related fields.

Information security and functional safety forum held by TÜV SÜD

Security can be divided into physical security, functional safety and information security. To be specific, physical security refers to reducing damages caused by electric shock, fire, radiation, mechanical hazards, chemical hazards and the like. Functional safety serves to prevent equipment and factory safety functions from failure or malfunction, thus ensuring safe conditions or a safe state. Information security means to ensure that unauthorized persons and systems can neither modify software and data nor access system functions, with a view to prevent illegal or harmful intrusion into the control system. With the advent of the era of big data, "information security" and "functional safety" have become important topics in the Internet of Things.

Expert insights into information security regulations from multiple levels

At the forum, experts from TÜV SÜD and other companies discussed information security and functional safety challenges faced by the automotive industry from multiple levels. The topics covered TISAX, the ISO/SAE 21434 cybersecurity engineering standard, information security in smart energy, the IEC 61508 standard for functional safety, etc. Mr. Yin Bing, Information Security Product Manager of TÜV SÜD Management Service, analyzed the application and implementation guidelines of TISAX in the automotive field. Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited (CATL) shared its implementation of TISAX in the new energy industry, which was a best business practice. Fuyao Glass analyzed its journey of information security from the ISO 27001 to TISAX as a player in the automotive glass market. Participants learned a lot from their insights.

Experts in various industries analyzed information security regulations and applications

For information security in the automotive field, Mr. Huang Jianzhong, Cyber Security Manager of ZF Group, talked about changes in the ISO/SAE 21434 standard and interpreted some technical details in it. Huang is also an ISO/SAE 21434: Road Vehicles—Cybersecurity Engineering lecturer jointly certified by SAE International and TÜV SÜD. In response to new challenges of information security in smart energy sector, Mr. Li Taiwei, General Manager of TÜV SÜD Industrial Products Greater China, shared five common misunderstandings in industrial control system (ICS) security. He also analyzed Ukrainian power grids cyberattack and a ransomware attack to a Germany based automation services provider to arouse attendees’ attention to information security. Mr. Li elaborated on the relevance among personnel, process and technology under the IEC 62443 framework, gave an overview of the IEC 62443 standard and introduced comprehensive services provided by TÜV SÜD covering assessment, gap analysis and certification, aiming to help companies ensure the security and reliability of their network information and continuously improve themselves to meet required standards and customer needs.

Reduction of the risk of hardware or systems failure via functional safety

Nowadays, functional safety is a major concern in many fields, including rail transit, automotive electronics, factory automation, tap water/sewage treatment/drainage systems, new energy control, smart grid, semiconductor industry control systems and so on. It embraces growing importance. Companies need to ensure functional safety to effectively avoid and control random hardware or system failures, thereby reducing risks and ensuring safety. Mr. Wang Xiaolin, a functional safety expert from TÜV SÜD Greater China, expounded the application scope and basic requirements of IEC 61508 and introduced types of functional safety failures, including random hardware failure, system failure and common cause failure. He analyzed potential hazards and risks in functional safety failures and presented typical functional safety designs to help companies build safety awareness and understand related knowledge and skills.


Industry experts analyzed functional safety regulations and applications

As automobiles develop toward electrification, intelligence and connectivity, safety performance evaluation becomes increasingly important. Mr. Dong Hao, Director of Automotive Electronics Safety Division, Tsinghua University Suzhou Automotive Research Institute, delivered a speech on “Application of Functional Safety in Intelligent Connected Vehicles”. Dong analyzed vehicle development process and highlighted that a failure or constrained performance in the electrification of control system may cause road accidents and casualties. He also examined potential causes of functional safety failures and introduced targeted preventive measures to reduce safety risks.

As a world-leading provider of quality, safety and sustainability solutions, TÜV SÜD aims to help companies improve production and operation efficiency, reduce costs and control risks with one-stop services. Regarding information security and functional safety, it provides training, certification, testing, knowledge services, inspection and audit for security-related fields including automotive electronics, factory automation, nuclear power instrumentation and control, rail transit signals, smart grids, etc., with a view to help companies ensure safety in product development, production and operation and acquire professional and cutting-edge knowledge.