The risks associated with the supply chain have become a huge concern in recent times, largely because of the interconnected systems and increasing complexity of global networks.

As organizations depend more on third-party vendors, the chances of supply chain attacks increase. No matter how robust your organization’s security measures are, there is no guarantee that the vendors are equally secure. This calls for urgent attention and more robust defenses.

Understanding Supply Chain Attack

A supply chain attack is a type of cyber attack that targets organizations by exploiting vulnerabilities in their supply chain. In a supply chain attack, the primary target is not attacked directly; instead, the attacker targets the third-party vendors, service providers, and Software providers, and takes advantage of the loopholes, unsafe network practices, or vulnerabilities that will allow the injection of Malware to indirectly compromise the primary target.

In technology, they are usually on Software vendors and hardware manufacturers where the completion of a product, from building to installation takes several steps. This gives room for the attacker to carry out malicious activities such as injecting malware into the product.

Impact and Real-world Examples of Supply Chain Attacks

A single supply chain attack can have a widespread impact. For instance, an attack on a supplier of a widely used product can affect thousands of businesses, governments, and individual users. Organizations that rely on third-party vendors for infrastructure are particularly vulnerable to supply chain attacks. The more suppliers involved, the higher the number of potential attack vectors.

Statistics show that approximately 183,000 customers were affected by supply chain cyber-attacks worldwide in 2024. The cyberattacks included counterfeiting, drive-by compromise, and malware infections.

Source

Okta, an identity access management vendor experienced a breach where the threat actor gained unauthorized access to their customer’s files. This was confirmed by David Bradbury, Okta’s Chief Security Officer, in his report dated November 3, 2023.

According to this report, the root cause as identified by Okta’s security can be linked to an employee who signed in to their personal Google account on the Chrome browser of their Okta Laptop. The credentials had been saved on the employee’s personal Google account. This suggests that the exposure of these credentials is a result of the compromise of the employee’s Google account. 

Another significant breach is the Solar wind attack that took place in 2020 affecting 18000 organizations, including government agencies and major corporations. Attackers gained unauthorized access to the Solarwind Software development environment injecting malicious codes into Orion platform updates.

Naijatech, a prominent Software development company in Nigeria, known for its innovative financial software used by Banks across Africa experienced a breach. This breach originated from an update from one of their trusted third-party software providers. The vendor responsible for their invoicing tools recently fell victim to a cyber attack, unknown to them. The attacker exploited the vulnerability and injected malware, which they introduced to Naijatech’s system as soon as it applied the latest update.

Why Supply Chain Are On The Increase 

Below are the key reasons. 

• High dependency on Third-Party vendors: Organizations depend heavily on third-party vendors for software, and hardware services, attackers capitalize on this and target smaller, less secure vendors to be able to compromise these organizations  

•  Open Source Software: Though it offers flexibility, it also opens an avenue for hackers to insert malicious code into dependencies that organizations widely use.

• Increasing Attack Surface from Remote Work: The switch to remote jobs has increased dependence on third-party applications, Saas platforms, and cloud services, increasing the chances of supply chain attack 

• Target to critical Infrastructure: supply chain attack allows threat Actors to easily compromise less secured third-party vendors thereby attacking high-value infrastructure such as the military, and energy sectors.

• Sophisticated cyber threats: Threat actors are becoming more skilled at exploiting weak links. Advanced Persistent Threat groups are using techniques like zero-day exploits and malware implants to compromise supply chain vendors. 

Ways to Mitigate Supply Chain Attacks 

“Although there is no one strategy for managing supply chain risks”, says James Lyne, chief strategy & Innovation Officer, of SANS Institute. James suggests some ways to mitigate supply chain risks below.

• Supplier Validation: Have a robust process in your procurement pipeline to validate suppliers and to make sure they are doing security basics well. Can they supply you with a pen test or vulnerability assessment results from recent scans? This could build confidence that they take security seriously. Can they notify you in the event of a breach? 

• Limit Exposure: Be more purposeful in allowing data exposure on the supplier’s platforms. 

• Risk Assessment: Conduct a thorough check to identify underlying risks and vulnerabilities and put effective measures in place to address these risks. It is important to include both Offensive and Defensive measures, compliance checks, regular audits, and continuous monitoring.

Defensive supply chain security measures entail backup and recovery procedures, data preservation, integrity and availability, security training, and awareness programs, especially on phishing and social engineering attacks. Offensive supply chain security measures include conducting penetration testing and red team exercises frequently.

Supply chain attacks are a growing threat as incidents like Okta, Solarwinds, and Naija Tech reveal. A little vulnerability in third-party vendors can lead to a widespread impact. To mitigate risks, one must be proactive. Validating suppliers, managing data exposure, and continuous security assessment. Even though tackling these attacks is not simple! However, organizations committed to security can better position themselves and their customers.

The Urgency of Proactive Security Measures

Proactive security measures are crucial to combat the rising threat of supply chain attacks. By taking preventive steps, organizations can reduce vulnerabilities, protect sensitive information, and safeguard their systems from potential breaches. Emphasizing proactive security is no longer optional—it’s essential for resilience and business continuity in an increasingly interconnected world.

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