Every organization needs to keep tabs on other players in the industry in order to stay competitive. It’s common for an organization to analyze a competitor’s website, perform secret shopping trips, and monitor a competitor’s marketing strategies. This type of competitive research is perfectly legal. But if an organization unlawfully obtains another company’s sensitive information, it is considered industrial espionage, which is illegal.

In the fast-paced and highly commercialized world of manufacturing, better automation creates a valuable competitive edge. The physical systems leveraged in the industry, the machinery, and the manual processes have all become more automated since the first industrial revolution. Today, smart systems that leverage advanced technologies such as machine learning and integrated IoT control are creating a next-generation industrial environment often termed 4.0.