Warehouse robots are controlled by software that came from other people: firmware, fleet management, navigation libraries and open source packages. A flaw or a tampered update in any layer can change how a machine moves near staff. So supply chain risk is a safety question, and it needs an owner on the floor as well as in IT.
What is actually inside a warehouse robot?
Think in layers. At the bottom sit the controller and its firmware. Above it run perception and navigation code, often built on open source libraries. Beside it is a fleet manager that assigns jobs and pushes updates, and a connection to the warehouse management system. Each layer has suppliers, and each supplier has dependencies.
You may not write any of that code. You still operate it, so you inherit its flaws and its update path.
How does a software problem become a physical one?
Through three routes, which we describe as general risk patterns, not as reported incidents.
First, a vulnerable component. If a library in the robot's stack has a known flaw, anyone who can reach that component might influence the machine's behaviour. Whether they can reach it depends on the network design.
Second, a tampered or unsigned update. The fleet manager pushes code to many robots at once, which is efficient and also a single point of failure. If updates are not verified, one bad package spreads to the whole fleet.
Third, an integration. Warehouse systems exchange data with each other. A compromised system upstream can send a robot commands that look valid.
What do the standards say?
We read these sources, and only claim what they state.
- ISO 10218 covers industrial robot safety. Industry press reports that the 2025 revision, the first major update since 2011, makes functional safety requirements more explicit, folds in collaborative robot material from ISO/TS 15066, and adds cybersecurity measures. Part 1 addresses robot manufacturers and Part 2 addresses integrators and applications. The article we read does not say which part carries the cybersecurity content, so check the standard. Mobile warehouse robots may fall under other standards, so confirm applicability with your supplier.
- ISA/IEC 62443 is a series for industrial automation and control systems. It separates the duties of asset owners, system integrators, product suppliers and service providers, and includes a part on secure product development and one on patch management.
- NIST SP 800-82 Rev. 3 is guidance on operational technology security. It covers programmable systems that monitor or control physical processes, and it recommends countermeasures with performance, reliability and safety in mind.
A useful reading of 62443 for a warehouse operator: you are the asset owner, your integrator and robot vendor have their own obligations, and your contract should say so.
Where does an SBOM help?
A software bill of materials lists the components in a product. If a new vulnerability is announced in a library, an SBOM lets you ask whether your robots contain it, which is a faster question than emailing three vendors. Safeguard's CLI can validate and scan an SBOM that a vendor provides. A scan reports known vulnerabilities in what is listed, and it cannot show components that the file omits or judge physical safety.
What to do
- List every robot model, its firmware version and its fleet manager.
- Ask each vendor for an SBOM and for its process for signing and verifying updates.
- Agree contractually how quickly critical fixes arrive and who applies them.
- Put robots and fleet management on their own network segment, and list what is allowed to cross.
- Stage updates on a small group of robots before the whole fleet.
- Keep a rollback path and a tested manual stop that does not depend on the network.
- Scan vendor SBOMs when they arrive and again after major advisories.
- Include safety staff in the review of any change that touches motion behaviour.
Quick check
Is a vulnerable library in a robot always dangerous?
No. Risk depends on whether the component is reachable and what it controls. Reachability and network design decide the real exposure, so assess both.
Who is responsible for robot software security, the vendor or the warehouse?
Both. IEC 62443 divides duties among owners, integrators and suppliers. Write the split into your contract.
Sources
- Material Handling and Logistics: ISO updates industrial robot safety standards
- ISA/IEC 62443 series overview
- NIST SP 800-82 Rev. 3, Guide to OT Security
- Safeguard CLI documentation
Last reviewed: 18 October 2026.
