Network segmentation (IT/OT separation) in SCADA systems - Mini Project: Build & Apply

Network segmentation (IT/OT separation)

📖 Scenario: You are working in a factory that uses SCADA systems to control machines. The factory wants to keep its IT network (office computers, email) separate from its OT network (machines, sensors) to improve security. You will create a simple representation of this network segmentation using Python dictionaries.

🎯 Goal: Build a Python dictionary that represents two separate networks: IT and OT. Then add a configuration variable to define which network is active. Finally, write code to list all devices in the active network.

📋 What You'll Learn

Create a dictionary called networks with two keys: 'IT' and 'OT'

Each key should map to a list of device names as strings

Create a variable called active_network and set it to either 'IT' or 'OT'

Write a for loop to iterate over the devices in the active network

Print each device name on its own line

💡 Why This Matters

🌍 Real World

Factories and industrial plants separate IT and OT networks to protect machines from cyber attacks and keep operations safe.

💼 Career

Understanding network segmentation is important for roles in industrial cybersecurity, network administration, and SCADA system management.

1

Create the network dictionary

Create a dictionary called networks with two keys: 'IT' and 'OT'. The 'IT' key should map to a list containing 'Office_PC1' and 'Email_Server'. The 'OT' key should map to a list containing 'PLC1' and 'SensorA'.

SCADA systems

# Your code here

Need a hint?

Use curly braces {} to create a dictionary. Use square brackets [] for lists.

2

Set the active network

Create a variable called active_network and set it to the string 'OT'.

SCADA systems

networks = {
    'IT': ['Office_PC1', 'Email_Server'],
    'OT': ['PLC1', 'SensorA']
}
# Your code here

Need a hint?

Assign the string 'OT' to the variable active_network.

3

Loop over devices in the active network

Write a for loop using the variable device to iterate over the list of devices in networks[active_network].

SCADA systems

networks = {
    'IT': ['Office_PC1', 'Email_Server'],
    'OT': ['PLC1', 'SensorA']
}
active_network = 'OT'
# Your code here

Need a hint?

Use for device in networks[active_network]: to loop over devices.

4

Print each device name

Inside the for loop, write a print(device) statement to display each device name.

SCADA systems

networks = {
    'IT': ['Office_PC1', 'Email_Server'],
    'OT': ['PLC1', 'SensorA']
}
active_network = 'OT'
for device in networks[active_network]:
    # Your code here

Need a hint?

Use print(device) inside the loop to show each device.