Fortress Information Security and Industrial Defender Join Forces to Ready Critical Infrastructure for AI-Speed Vulnerability Discovery

Integrated solution pairs two decades of trusted OT asset intelligence with AI-driven vulnerability correlation, identifying every affected OT asset in minutes instead of weeks of manual correlation

ORLANDO, Fla. and FOXBOROUGH, Mass., Aug. 11, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Artificial intelligence is rewriting the economics of vulnerability discovery. AI-assisted research tools are now finding software flaws at machine speed, and annual CVE disclosure volume is on pace to exceed 66,000 disclosures in 2026, a roughly 44% increase over 2025, according to FIRST.org's Mid-Year 2026 Vulnerability Forecast and NVD data. For critical infrastructure operators who cannot patch at will, the widening gap between disclosure volume and response capacity is becoming the defining operational technology (OT) security problem of the decade.

Today, Fortress Information Security, the leading AI-Powered Risk Management company defending critical infrastructure and federal agencies, and Industrial Defender, the OT asset visibility and risk management pioneer celebrating its 20th year, announced an integrated solution that prepares OT environments for AI-speed vulnerability discovery - the acceleration of vulnerability disclosures driven by AI research tools that find flaws faster than human teams can triage them.

The integration unites Industrial Defender's complete, trusted view of deployed OT assets - firmware and software versions, configurations, patch levels, and operational risk context - with the Fortress Platform's AI-driven vulnerability correlation, SBOM analysis, and remediation workflow. When a new vulnerability is disclosed, the joint solution identifies every affected asset in the OT environment, down to embedded software libraries compiled into specific firmware versions, and prioritizes response based on asset criticality, location, and connectivity rather than generic severity scores.

Joint capabilities include:

• Disclosure-to-asset correlation in minutes: newly disclosed vulnerabilities are automatically mapped to every affected asset and component across the OT estate
• Operational-context prioritization: risk scoring grounded in asset criticality, physical location, external connectivity, and configuration state, not CVSS alone
• Component-level depth: SBOM generation, ingestion, and analysis, including North American Energy Software Assurance Database (NAESAD) coverage for the energy sector
• End-to-end NERC CIP coverage: from asset categorization (CIP-002) through configuration and vulnerability assessment (CIP-010) and supply chain risk management (CIP-013), with audit evidence captured automatically
• Closed-loop remediation workflow with auditable evidence of action

"Vulnerability discovery now happens at machine speed, and response has to keep pace," said Alex Santos, CEO of Fortress Information Security. "Most OT programs were built for a world of hundreds of relevant disclosures a year. That world is ending. Together with Industrial Defender, we are giving operators the asset truth and the AI-driven correlation to walk into the next disclosure surge with proof of readiness, not promises."

"For twenty years, Industrial Defender has built the most accurate picture of what is actually running inside industrial environments," said George Kalavantis, CEO of Industrial Defender. "That asset truth becomes exponentially more valuable when it is correlated against vulnerability intelligence at the tempo AI-driven discovery now demands. This partnership turns deep asset visibility into prioritized, defensible action."

About Fortress Information Security

Fortress is the leading AI-Powered Risk Management company, defending critical infrastructure and government agencies against cyber threats and mission risks. Fortress engages industry through the Asset to Vendor Library and the North American Energy Software Assurance Database (NAESAD), and serves eight of the top ten public utilities and three of the six U.S. military branches. Learn more at fortressinfosec.com.

About Industrial Defender

Industrial Defender provides OT and ICS cybersecurity and compliance solutions for critical infrastructure operators, including electric utilities, oil & gas, chemical, water, and manufacturing organizations. The platform delivers continuous OT asset visibility, vulnerability management, and audit-ready compliance reporting across frameworks including NERC CIP, NIS2, IEC 62443, and NIST CSF.

Media Contacts

Fortress Information Security: Vrge Strategies – Josh Zecher – [email protected]

Industrial Defender: Bryan Mitchell - [email protected] 

SOURCE Fortress Information Security