Introduction

The following protocols can be secured using certificates:

• Communication between Automation Builder and the PLC (e.g. Programming, Monitoring)
• Communication between the PLC’s webserver and visualization clients (browsers)
• Communication between the PLC’s FTP server and FTP clients
• Communication between the OPC UA server and OPC UA clients

As a prerequisite to enable secure communication on one or more protocols, the required certificates need to be present on the PLC.

Note

For security reasons ABB does not encourage the use of self-signed certificates. ABB shall not be held liable for any damage or loss that arises due to the use of self-signed certificates on AC500 PLCs.

Self-signed certificates protect against eavesdropping if used correctly. They do not offer any secure means of authentication.