Lifts in Germany vulnerable to cyberattacks, says Tüv
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By Olivia Logan
The German Technical Inspection Association (Tüv) has warned that lifts in the country are particularly vulnerable to cyberattacks.
German lifts unprotected against cyberattacks
An increasing number of lifts in Germany operate using digital systems. According to the Tüv’s latest plant safety report, lifts in residential and commercial buildings in Germany are insufficiently protected against cyberattacks.
Nearly 65 percent of the 723.000 lifts serviced in 2025 had slightly insufficient protections, 4 percent more than in 2024 and a whole 22 percent more than in 2023.
In 2025, only 23,7 percent of the serviced lifts were found to have sufficient protections, 10,8 percent had considerably insufficient protections, and 0,8 percent had dangerously insufficient protections.
Despite the fact that “[o]perators have been required for several years to implement appropriate protective measures and document them”, a lack of cybersecurity protections is the main driver of the increase between 2023 and 2025, according to the Tüv. The association said lift production companies and operating services should take their responsibilities more seriously.
Why would cybercriminals target lifts?
If lifts and their emergency operating systems are connected to the internet and lack sufficient cybersecurity protections, cybercriminals could control a lift’s movements. For example, stopping a lift in the shaft or continuously moving it up and down.
Such a scenario might be negligible if it were rare or didn’t affect a large number of people, but it could cause significant disruption if lift systems in critical infrastructure buildings, such as hospitals, government buildings, or railway stations, were intercepted.
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Editor for Germany at IamExpat Media. Olivia first came to Germany in 2013 to work as an Au Pair. Since studying English Literature and German in Scotland, Freiburg and Berlin she has worked as a features journalist and news editor.Read more