What are Supply Chain Attacks?

The threat to supplier and vendors

Security teams work hard to put defenses in place to protect their infrastructure and data. However, they have very little control over the cybersecurity of their suppliers and vendors, who may be inadvertently leaving the organization open to third-party attacks.

A 2024 report from Verizon found a supply chain influenced 15 percent of the breaches, a significant growth from 9 percent in 2023. The report highlights the need for organizations to be more aware of third-party risks and have better knowledge of the vulnerabilities associated with these types of attacks. Increased consciousness of how an organization’s suppliers and vendors are securing their systems allows businesses to be confident that their data isn’t going to make its way onto the dark web.

In this blog we will discuss why cybercriminals on the dark web are increasingly targeting supplier and vendor client databases, give examples of third-party attacks, understand how organizations can be affected, and delve into how businesses can take control of the threats from the dark web.

Why are supply chains a threat to organizations?

The dark web provides a space for cybercriminals to exploit vulnerabilities and launch targeted attacks against supply chain partners. From stolen credentials to insider information, the threat to organizations is vast.

The threat from a supply chain is directly linked to the number of suppliers, which increases the number of potential attack entry points. The more digital solutions are used by a business, the more potential entry points cybercriminals have. Exposure to attack can result from known software vulnerabilities, zero-day exploits, or overlooked configuration errors.

Supply chain attacks can result in a cybercriminal harvesting a lot of data that spans hundreds of different organizations, which makes this attack vector popular. While gaining access to an organization’s supply chain may take time, once they’ve done it all of the data they’ve collected will then go on to be sold or traded on dark web marketplaces. And, if an organization’s supplier doesn’t make them aware a breach has happened, they will be none the wiser if they have been compromised and at risk of further cyberattacks.

The effect of supply chain attacks on organizations

Victims of a supply chain attack can face many complications and consequences, including:

Infected systems and networks

If an organization’s supplier provides software, hardware, or cloud services, malware could be launched into the suppliers’ infrastructure, in turn passing it down to the organizations using their product. This could lead to security breaches and further cyberattacks on the business.

Compromised data security

If an organization’s supplier handles sensitive customer information such as financial data, intellectual property, or login credentials, an attack on the supplier can lead to data leaks. These data leaks can mean that an organization’s data makes its way onto dark web marketplaces where cybercriminals will buy the information to perform additional cyberattacks.

Business disruption

A compromised supplier might be unable to deliver products or services, leading to production delays, missed deadlines, or supply shortages. This can mean operational delays, which can affect customers, and in the long run, brand reputation, long-term business relationships and profitability.

Financial and legal risks

If a business is a victim of a supply chain attack they could face financial losses due to downtime, regulatory fines for data breaches, plus any costs associated with further cyberattacks. Financial implications can also come in the form of incident response, data recovery, and remediation – while the organization is focused on rectifying the attack, they are being taken away from every day operations and moving the business forward.

Continued spread of attack

If an organization does face additional cyberattacks after being a victim of a supply chain attack, they themselves might find their own customers are at risk of attack. As we have discussed, this is a large part of why supply chain attacks are on the rise and cybercriminals are employing this attack vector more.

Examples of supplier threats in the real world

One of the best examples of a supply chain attack is SolarWinds. In February 2020 suspected nation-state hackers gained access to the networks, systems and data of thousands of SolarWinds customers. Due to the amount of customers SolarWinds have, this supply chain attack is said to be one of the largest of its kind ever recorded.

SolarWinds is a major software company, which provides system management tools for network and infrastructure monitoring, and other technical services to hundreds of thousands of organizations around the world. SolarWinds Orion, an IT performance monitoring system, has privileged access to IT systems to obtain log and system performance data. It is that privileged position and its wide deployment that made SolarWinds an attractive target to cybercriminals.

More than 30,000 organizations use Orion, and as a result, the hack compromised the data, networks and systems of thousands when SolarWinds delivered the backdoor malware as an update to the Orion software.

The hack also exposed the inner workings of Orion users, which meant the hackers could potentially access the data and networks of their customers and partners as well.

How can organizations mitigate the threat from supply chain attacks?

Organizations can mitigate the threat from supply chain attacks by monitoring the dark web to see if cybercriminals are targeting any of their most critical vendors before it impacts their business.

Dark web monitoring can identify attacks earlier in the cyber kill chain, which allows organizations to spot cybercriminals while they are still in the early reconnaissance stages of their attack. Not only does this allow organizations to take additional preventative action, they can also warn their suppliers of any suspicious behavior.

As well as identifying any incoming dark web threats, the knowledge gleaned from dark web monitoring tools on cybercriminal tactics helps organizations to prioritize their cybersecurity efforts and resources, armed with more knowledge on the most likely path of attack.

And, while organizations can’t access their supplier’s infrastructure or run vulnerability scans on their software, they can monitor the dark web to find out if they have been exposed without relying on updates and intel from the supplier.

Want to know more about third-party and supply chain security, ARRANGE A DEMO with one of our team of experts today.