ics_mem_collect vs RunSafe Protect: 2026 Comparison
ics_mem_collect is a free industrial control system security tool. RunSafe Protect is a commercial industrial control system security tool by runsafe. Compare features, ratings, integrations, and community reviews side by side to find the best industrial control system security fit for your security stack.
CST VerdictBased on our analysis of NIST CSF 2.0 coverage, core features, integrations, company size fit, here is our conclusion:
ICS defenders doing firmware analysis and reverse engineering will find ics_mem_collect valuable for direct memory access on PLCs and RTUs without proprietary vendor tools; the free pricing and API-first design mean you can integrate it into existing automation workflows. The 31 GitHub stars signal early adoption among practitioners, though the project is still narrow in scope. This is not for buyers seeking a turnkey forensics platform or broad device coverage; ics_mem_collect is a developer tool that demands integration work and assumes you already know what memory regions matter to your devices.
Embedded systems teams in mid-market and enterprise organizations defending OT/ICS environments should evaluate RunSafe Protect if you're tired of choosing between source code access requirements and exploit protection; the tool hardens binaries at build time without touching your codebase, which matters when you're integrating third-party firmware or locked-down vendor code. Load-time Function Randomization stops buffer overflows and code injection at runtime across Linux, VxWorks, QNX, and other embedded OS platforms, with FDA and automotive compliance already mapped. Skip this if your security posture depends heavily on detection and response; RunSafe prioritizes prevention, which means your NIST ID.RA risk scores improve but your SOC won't catch everything in flight.
