Global Protection for Neutral CAD Files Offers Cybersecurity Without Borders

In today’s interconnected manufacturing landscape, sharing neutral or interoperable computer-aided design (CAD) files with third parties throughout your supply chain is essential for bringing products from design to delivery. Neutral file formats such as IGES, DXF, DWG, and STL have become the industry standard for cross-platform accessibility, allowing recipients to open files using CAD applications such as SolidWorks, AutoCAD, PTC Creo, Siemens NX, and Autodesk Inventor. Because neutral CAD formats are compatible across various CAD applications and product lifecycle management (PLM) systems, they allow for the seamless flow of design and manufacturing data between stakeholders.

Supply chains, however, are becoming more geographically distributed and opaque, which means that the CAD files shared by designers and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) from devices, networks, and cloud environments cross a significant number of “borders”, where traditional cybersecurity solutions may be less effective or no longer apply. CAD files are also high-value targets for threat actors because they usually contain sensitive data like intellectual property (IP), trade secrets, and other proprietary information. This means that neutral CAD files shared beyond the traditional borders of an organization may be at higher risk of unauthorized access, IP theft, and data loss.

As supply chains become more complex, it’s increasingly important to protect CAD models, 3D CAD, and other data as it moves through a web of third-party partners, subcontractors, and vendors. Traditional security measures such as legal agreements, firewalls, and data loss prevention (DLP) tools, have proven insufficient for today’s borderless data-sharing landscape.

By contrast, Seclore’s data-centric security platform extends enterprise digital rights management (EDRM) to neutral CAD files, ensuring they remain encrypted and protected regardless of where they travel. Seclore embeds security within neutral CAD files, adding fine-grained access control, world-class encryption, and global visibility so manufacturers can securely collaborate across digital and physical borders.

The Challenge of Protecting Neutral CAD Files Across Borders

Neutral CAD files are widely used in manufacturing due to their compatibility across various design systems. This compatibility means that third party designers, suppliers, and subcontractors can each access the same file using different CAD applications, which helps OEMs collaborate seamlessly with partners throughout their supply chain.

Unfortunately, externalization (the process of exporting and sharing neutral CAD files with third parties) often means that organizations lose the security controls, protections, and visibility they enjoyed before those files were externalized. This cybersecurity gap results in the loss or theft of intellectual property (IP) in approximately 43% of data breaches, which can seriously damage a company’s competitive advantage, lead to regulatory issues, and undermine valuable partnerships.

Traditional security models that rely on perimeter-based controls like firewalls, VPNs, DLPS, CASBs, and even PLMs struggle to keep up with the reality of today’s borderless data sharing. Manufacturers must shift to a data-centric approach, embedding security within neutral CAD files themselves, to ensure they’re protected wherever they travel.

Transcending Borders with Data-Centric Security for CAD Files

Data-centric solutions redefine cybersecurity by embedding protection with the data itself. Using Seclore’s EDRM capabilities, even copies of neutral CAD files preserve their security policies across various borders, such as:

Device Borders (Endpoints)

CAD files are accessed on a variety of devices, from high-performance workstations in design labs to mobile devices used by remote teams. Every endpoint where CAD files are accessed, whether it’s a Windows workstation or an Android mobile device, presents a potential security risk (especially in third-party environments). Unauthorized access to design files on such devices can lead to intellectual property theft, which is costly both financially and competitively.

Seclore ensures that neutral CAD files retain their encryption and security policies, such as view-only access, across all devices. These policies also control whether users can access, edit, or act (print, copy, etc.) to protect IP across company, hybrid, and third-party work environments. This persistent encryption ensures CAD data is secure even if accessed on third-party or personal devices, reducing risks associated with remote work and outsourcing.

Network Borders (On-Premises and Cloud)

As CAD files move between local, on-premises systems, and cloud-based networks, they are exposed to numerous threats. Cloud-based storage solutions for CAD applications, like Autodesk Fusion 360 or Solid Edge, have become increasingly popular due to the flexibility and scalability they offer. However, traditional network-level controls alone are insufficient to protect data as it moves across hybrid cloud environments or between personal, corporate, and third-party networks.

With Seclore, neutral CAD files maintain persistent protection as they transition from internal servers to cloud-based platforms or third-party environments. This protection applies to common interoperable file types including DWG, DXF, and STEP, and even extends to cloud-hosted PLM platforms. Administrators can track file movement, access, and modifications, ensuring neutral CAD files remain secure regardless of the environment in which they are stored or accessed. By embedding security directly within the data, Seclore enables companies to share neutral CAD files freely, even when the files cross network boundaries.

Application Borders (Cross-Platform Collaboration)

Manufacturers and their supply chain partners frequently use different CAD applications and PLM solutions, creating a need for neutral formats that facilitate cross-platform interoperability. Neutral CAD files, such as those in STEP and DWG formats, are specifically designed to be compatible across various CAD systems. However, this compatibility also creates vulnerabilities since security controls within the native application do not always transfer when files are shared externally.

Seclore’s solution addresses this issue by providing a seamless layer of protection that allows organizations to apply security policies consistently across neutral CAD files. This federated approach to security allows teams to collaborate across different software environments without compromising data protection. Even when a DWG or DXF file is opened in a different CAD system, Seclore ensures that access permissions, usage restrictions, and dynamic watermarking remain intact. This level of cross-platform security helps ensure that files retain protection, even when exported from applications like AutoCAD or checked out of PLM systems like Siemens Teamcenter.

Organizational Borders (Third-Party Vendors and Partners)

Manufacturers must share design files with various external entities, including third-party vendors, contractors, and suppliers. However, each instance of file sharing outside an organization introduces a point of risk where direct control and visibility are often lost. For most organizations, sharing CAD files across corporate borders can expose proprietary IP, as there are a limited number of security solutions that can address how these files are handled once they leave an organization.

Seclore extends security controls beyond organizational borders, enabling secure collaboration with third parties. With administrative controls like view-only permissions, dynamic watermarks, and access expiration, manufacturers can maintain control over IP even after sharing it with third parties. Additionally, Seclore provides real-time tracking and logging of file-related activity, which allows manufacturers to verify compliance and maintain visibility over sensitive CAD files, no matter how far they travel along the supply chain.

Geopolitical Borders (State and National Boundaries)

In a global manufacturing environment, CAD files frequently cross state and national borders. As CAD files cross these borders, regulatory considerations such as national security and other export controls may come into play. Various international laws, standards, and regulations such as the US CHIPS Act, International Traffic in Arms Regulation (ITAR), NIS2, and others impose strict requirements on cross-border data sharing, especially when dealing with IP related to product design and manufacturing.

Seclore’s data-centric security platform embeds user authentication, access controls, and geolocation tracking within CAD files, ensuring that these policies are enforced consistently, even across state boundaries. With Seclore, manufacturers can set location-based access restrictions on CAD files, maintaining compliance with local and international regulations. This capability is essential for protecting IP while ensuring adherence to export controls and data privacy laws when sharing CAD files with global partners.

Empowering Secure, Borderless Collaboration in Manufacturing

As global collaboration becomes the norm, manufacturers need security solutions that protect the proprietary information contained in CAD files, without hindering productivity. Seclore enables secure sharing across borders, ensuring that sensitive neutral CAD files retain their security policies as they move across devices, networks, applications, and international borders.

By embedding EDRM and tracking capabilities directly into neutral CAD files, Seclore allows manufacturing teams to collaborate confidently and securely on a global scale.

With Seclore, organizations can protect IP in competitive markets where safeguarding designs is crucial to their success. This data-centric approach not only secures sensitive data at the file level but also provides the flexibility necessary for modern, collaborative, and dynamic manufacturing processes.

As supply chains grow increasingly complex and globally interconnected, solutions like Seclore are essential for facilitating secure, borderless collaboration in the manufacturing industry.

Future-Proofing Neutral CAD File Security with Seclore

Seclore’s data-centric security platform equips manufacturers to protect CAD files anywhere — whether your organization needs to share neutral CAD files across devices, networks, or physical borders.

By enabling persistent protection across endpoint devices, cloud and on-premises networks, third-party supply chains, and global marketplaces, Seclore supports unrestricted collaboration for manufacturing leaders worldwide.

Learn more about EDRM for neutral CAD files.