Successfully deploying RED-certified devices

Which cybersecurity settings are now important for barcode scanners, printers and smart glasses

The extended European Radio Equipment Directive (RED) introduces new mandatory requirements for many radio devices that can connect directly or indirectly to the internet, including barcode scanners, label printers and smart glasses.

In addition to the existing requirements of the familiar CE marking, such as electrical safety, electromagnetic compatibility and efficient radio use, affected devices must now also meet extended safety requirements:

Network security: Devices must not compromise networks and must ensure data integrity.
Privacy protection: Protection of users' personal data.
Fraud protection: Reduction of fraud risks through secure authentication, for example.

What does this mean in practice during commissioning?

Since 1 August 2025, new devices have been shipped with customised firmware and ‘secure by default’ settings. This reduces typical risks such as unnecessarily activated services, insecure default configurations or unprotected access from the outset.

The higher security standards entail additional setup effort – especially if you have relied heavily on ‘plug and play’ in the past:

Requirement to set up user authentication before critical device settings can be changed.
Network services (e.g. FTP, SNMP, HTTP, TCP RAW) are no longer active across the board, but must be enabled specifically – only when really needed.

Other important new features:

Minimum WLAN standard: As a rule, at least WPA2 (AES) is expected; older, weaker methods (e.g. WPA/TKIP) are thus finally losing their importance in the professional environment.
Firmware downloads are restricted by default and only available after successful login.
Security settings are retained even if the device is reset to factory settings (protection against ‘reset as a workaround’).

Support from Barcotec

The new RED requirements do not make projects more complex, but they do require a structured setup and rollout process. Centralised management should be considered from the outset: particularly for larger device fleets, an MDM or UEM approach is recommended in order to roll out security policies, configurations and updates consistently and efficiently.

As part of our services, our support team assists you with configuration, firmware and security updates, and the secure commissioning of your devices.