Cybersecurity
Cybersecurity for Building Automation: BMS and BACnet
Protect a building management system: find its weak points, harden controllers and secure BACnet and vendor remote access.
Cybersecurity for Building Automation: BMS and BACnet is a free, self-paced online course from EDWartens for BMS engineers, facility managers and integrators. It has 9 modules and takes about 8.1 hours, with written notes, a practice task per module, a practical project and a final assessment of 15 questions (pass mark 60%). Learning costs nothing and needs only a free account. The optional EDWartens Certificate of Completion, verifiable by code, is a one-off US$28.99 for you; it is not a vendor credential. Updated 1 November 2026.
- Free
- Intermediate
- 8.1 hours
- Self-paced
- Certificate optional
- Lab practice in your browser
No card, no trial. The course is free for good. Certificate US$28.99, optional.
- Who it is for
- BMS engineers, facility managers and integrators
- Jobs
- Roles that use this skill: OT security analyst, security engineer, network engineer and compliance analyst. No course guarantees a job.
- Tools
- None required. Wireshark (free) is useful for looking at BACnet traffic on a test network you own. Hardware: none. A spare BACnet controller on a bench network makes the hardening exercises more real.
- Updated
After this course you can
By the end you will be able to:
- Describe a BMS network from management level to field level
- Find the weak points in a building's network
- Harden controllers, servers and workstations
- Design a BMS with security zones and conduits
- Plan BACnet Secure Connect and safe vendor remote access
Who it is for, and what you need first
Who it is for
BMS engineers, facility managers and integrators.
Level: Intermediate. Intermediate. You should know what a BMS does and have basic networking knowledge: IP addresses, subnets and VLANs. Experience with BACnet or Modbus helps but is not required.
What you need
Software: None required. Wireshark (free) is useful for looking at BACnet traffic on a test network you own..
Hardware: None. A spare BACnet controller on a bench network makes the hardening exercises more real.. What to download, and how.
How this course works
Watch the lessons
Short video lessons, one module at a time, at your own pace.
Read the notes
Open the Reading tab for the written notes and diagrams of the module.
Practise in the 3D labOptional
Try the module in the free 3D lab, in your browser.
Check yourself
Answer the questions to see what stuck before you move on.
Final assessment
Pass the final once you have been through the modules.
Certificate, if you want oneOptional
Optional, with a page anyone can use to verify it.
What you learn
9 modules in order, at your own pace. 8.1 hours of video lessons, with written notes and a practice task in each module.
- 1Buildings that got hacked17m
- 2How a BMS network is built, and where it is weak, with lab practice: 15m
- 3Cyber security for building automation50m
- 4Designing a secure building management system, with lab practice: 28m
- 5BACnet Secure Connect1h 2m
- 6Securing BACnet systems in depth, with lab practice: 59m
- 7Segmentation, remote access and zero trust, with lab practice: 22m
- 8Where BACnet security is going59m
Show the other 1 modules
- 9Final Assessment
Software you need
What to download, where from, what it costs and how to install it. Every link goes to the maker's own site, never a mirror.
Nothing is required
Wireshark is useful for looking at BACnet traffic on a test network you own.
Show what to download (1 tool)
Optional
Useful, not needed to finish the course.
- 01Free
Wireshark
Wireshark Foundation
- Runs on
- Windows 11 or 10 64-bit (x64 or Arm64), Windows Server 2016 or later, macOS (Universal disk image), Linux
- Account
- None needed
Free, open source software. No licence fee for any use.
Steps
- 1.Open wireshark.org/download.html.
- 2.Download the Windows x64 Installer (or Arm64, or the macOS Universal Disk Image).
- 3.Run the installer and keep the Npcap option ticked on Windows.
- 4.Open Wireshark, pick your network interface and click the blue fin to start capturing.
- Npcap is needed for live capture on Windows. The Windows installer includes it.
- Only capture traffic on networks you own or have written permission to monitor.
Official download pagewireshark.org
Checked against each maker's own page on 27 September 2026. Trial lengths and editions change; the maker's page is the final word.
Practise in the 3D lab
Practise the same levels, zones, firewall rules and vendor access you design for a building's BMS, on a fictional plant network in the OT security lab.
- Map the plant network: put every device on its levelOT security labOpen in the lab (opens in a new tab): Map the plant network: put every device on its level
- Zones and conduits: split a flat networkOT security labOpen in the lab (opens in a new tab): Zones and conduits: split a flat network
- Firewall rules: the minimum, then deny by defaultOT security labOpen in the lab (opens in a new tab): Firewall rules: the minimum, then deny by default
- Remote access: the vendor comes in through the DMZOT security labOpen in the lab (opens in a new tab): Remote access: the vendor comes in through the DMZ
Optional. Skip it whenever you like: it never blocks your progress or your certificate.
Course project, about 10 hours
Securing the BMS of a Lagos office tower: asset inventory, zones and conduits, risk register and BACnet/SC migration plan
Assess and secure the building management system of a 14-storey office tower, as the BMS security engineer. List every connected asset, draw the zones and conduits, and register the risks. Plan the hardening, the remote access changes and the move to BACnet/SC, and write the evidence note for the tenant. Work from drawings and your own bench equipment, and never scan or change a live building without the owner's written permission.
- 4documents in the pack
- 6steps to follow
- Laboptional: in the 3D lab
- 5things to hand in
- 10 hof work, at your pace
- Asset inventoryBMS asset inventory: Coastline Tech Park Tower B
- Zones & conduitsZones and conduits: Tower B BMS
- Risk registerBMS risk register: Tower B
- PlanBMS hardening, remote access and BACnet/SC migration plan: Tower B
Do it in the lab: 5 steps.
The project is optional practice. The certificate needs only the modules and the final assessment.
After the course, your next step
Show what you can do, then keep going in the same field.
A certificate you can verify
Finish the modules and pass the final assessment (15 questions, pass mark 60%) and you can add a certificate with a public verification page. One-off, US$28.99 for you. It is not a vendor credential.
Want a free certificate? Do the matching Free internship: 4 weeks, nothing to buy, with a free certificate of completion.
Cybersecurity (IT and OT)
Eight short weeks of security basics, networks, access control, a security operations centre, industrial (OT) security, IEC 62443 and incident response: notes, diagrams, a few videos and worked exercises. Finish weeks 1 to 4 and the final, then claim a free Internship Completion Certificate with your real dates and study hours, and a QR code anyone can scan to verify it. Training, not employment.
See the internshipMore free courses
Roles that use this skill
- OT security analyst
- Security engineer
- Network engineer
- Compliance analyst
These are the kinds of roles where the skill is used. We make no promise of a job or an interview.
Plain notes
- Free: the whole course, the notes, the practice tasks, the final assessment and support from practising engineers.
- Paid, and optional: the course certificate, and the Engineer-verified internship (the Free internship costs nothing).
- No job promise: the course teaches a skill. It does not place you in a job.
- Lessons by: Instrumentation Tools, Siemens Knowledge Hub, BACnet International, Smart Buildings Academy. Independent creators; the lessons stream from their own channels. EDWartens wrote the study plan, notes, practice tasks and assessments.
Instrumentation Tools · Siemens Knowledge Hub · BACnet International · Smart Buildings Academy · Aayat Technical · IBM Technology · IFSEC Insider · Intelligent Buildings · Kaspersky · Cimetrics. If you are one of these creators and want a lesson removed or credited differently, write to info@edwartens.com.
Practise what you learn in the free 3D lab
Technical work is judged on what you can do: wiring, commissioning, finding a fault. Doing a task yourself teaches more than watching it a second time, and a lab lets you try it safely before you meet real equipment. It does not replace working on real hardware.
- Practise safely, so a mistake costs nothing.
- The lab checks your work like a site test, so you know when it is right.
- Free, in your browser, with nothing to install.
Why learn with EDWartens
What you get with this course, and what comes after it.
- Free from the first lesson to the final assessment.
- Practice in a free 3D lab in your browser, with nothing to install.
- Video lessons with written notes and a project.
- An optional certificate that anyone can verify online.
- Free internships to keep practising afterwards.
Common questions
Who is the Cybersecurity for Building Automation: BMS and BACnet course for?
BMS engineers and technicians, system integrators, facility managers, MEP consultants and OT or IT security staff who look after building systems. Basic networking knowledge is assumed.
Is this a hacking course?
No. It teaches people responsible for buildings to protect them. There are no techniques for attacking systems, and the course warns against testing live buildings without written permission.
Is it tied to one BMS vendor?
No. It is about BACnet, Modbus and the design of any BMS. Siemens and other companies' lessons are used where they explain the ideas well, credited on each module, and none of them is affiliated with EDWartens.
Do I need BACnet/SC equipment?
No. The course explains BACnet/SC from the lessons and the standard's principles. If you have a controller that supports it, the bench exercises become more real.
Is the Cybersecurity for Building Automation: BMS and BACnet course really free?
Yes. Every module, the notes, the project and the final assessment. The only paid item is the certificate, if you want it.
What certificate does the Cybersecurity for Building Automation: BMS and BACnet course give?
An EDWartens Certificate of Completion, issued when you pass the final assessment, with a number anyone can verify on our site. It is not a BACnet International or ASHRAE certification.
How long does the Cybersecurity for Building Automation: BMS and BACnet course take?
About 8.1 hours of video lessons, notes and practice questions, plus about 10 hours if you do the project. At an hour a day, that is about two and a half weeks.
What is the project in the Cybersecurity for Building Automation: BMS and BACnet course?
You assess the BMS of a 14-storey office tower in Lagos, Nigeria, whose tenant wants evidence that the building's systems are secure. You write an asset inventory, a zones and conduits model, a risk register, and a plan for hardening, vendor remote access and a phased move to BACnet/SC.
Do I have to use the lab?
No. The lab is optional practice. You can skip it whenever you like, and it never blocks your progress, the final assessment or your certificate.
Is the lab free?
Yes. Every lab level for this course opens in your browser, free, with nothing to install.
What topics does the Cybersecurity for Building Automation: BMS and BACnet course cover, module by module?
The Cybersecurity for Building Automation: BMS and BACnet course has 9 modules. It opens with "Buildings that got hacked", goes through "How a BMS network is built, and where it is weak", "Designing a secure building management system", "Securing BACnet systems in depth" and "Where BACnet security is going" and ends with "Final Assessment". The full list with minutes is under "What you learn" on this page.
What can I do after the Cybersecurity for Building Automation: BMS and BACnet course?
After the Cybersecurity for Building Automation: BMS and BACnet course: Explain how buildings have been hacked and why a BMS can be a way into the business; Describe BMS architecture and find the weak points in BACnet, Modbus and MS/TP networks; Harden controllers, servers and accounts in the building's priorities. These are the practical outcomes the course is written around, and the final assessment of 15 questions checks them.
What software and hardware do I need for the Cybersecurity for Building Automation: BMS and BACnet course, and does it cost anything?
For the Cybersecurity for Building Automation: BMS and BACnet course, software: None required. Wireshark (free) is useful for looking at BACnet traffic on a test network you own. Hardware: none. A spare BACnet controller on a bench network makes the hardening exercises more real. The course itself is free.
Is the Cybersecurity for Building Automation: BMS and BACnet course suitable for me, and what level is it?
Cybersecurity for Building Automation: BMS and BACnet is rated intermediate. Intermediate. You should know what a BMS does and have basic networking knowledge: IP addresses, subnets and VLANs. Experience with BACnet or Modbus helps but is not required. It is written for BMS engineers, facility managers and integrators, and takes about 8.1 hours at your own pace.
Which jobs use the skills from the Cybersecurity for Building Automation: BMS and BACnet course?
Skills from the Cybersecurity for Building Automation: BMS and BACnet course (for example: explain how buildings have been hacked and why a BMS can be a way into the business) are used in roles such as OT security analyst, security engineer, network engineer and compliance analyst, and in OT security engineer work. The course gives you practical evidence of the skill; it does not promise a job, and employers decide on experience and interview.
Start free today
Cybersecurity for Building Automation: BMS and BACnet, at your own pace. Add the certificate only if you want one.