Supply chain attacks are as varied as they are devastating. Some involve inserting malicious code into software, while others aim to compromise legitimate websites. The aim of these attacks is to cause as much chaos as possible, disrupting the flow of products and services to slow down productivity. This can lead to financial losses, loss of reputation, and so much more. It’s the job of everyone in the supply chain to ensure their cyber security is up to scratch. One weak link can disrupt things for everyone.
Protecting your company and your supply chain can be as simple as obtaining Cyber Essentials certification.
What Are Supply Chain Attacks?
A supply chain attack happens when cybercriminals exploit vulnerabilities in a company’s suppliers, vendors, or service providers to gain access to their ultimate target. These attacks are effective because businesses often trust third-party providers with sensitive data, software, and system access. Additionally, an email from a supplier is less likely to look suspicious, and so recipients are more likely to follow instructions in the email without question. If a supplier is compromised, it can create a backdoor into multiple organisations, spreading damage far beyond the initial breach.
The bigger the supply chain, the bigger the risks. As companies work with different vendors, clients, customers and suppliers, the more people involved in the chain grows exponentially. An attacker can target any point in that chain and work their way through to the desired target. Cybercriminals target third-party suppliers to steal customer credentials, payment details, or proprietary business data. Others might want to bring down a company to cause unrest or stop certain products from being sold.
8 Types of Supply Chain Attacks
There are many types of supply chain attacks, and new ones always appear. However, most attacks tend to fall into the following categories.
1. Compromised software tools: The hacker introduces vulnerabilities into your software development tools, infrastructure, or processes, compromising any resulting applications and putting customers at risk.
2. Phishing & Social Engineering Through Suppliers: Fraudulent emails or fake communications appear to come from a trusted vendor, tricking employees into clicking malicious links or sharing sensitive information. Some cyber attackers might even hijack conversations to make both parties believe they are still talking to each other, but they are actually talking to the hacker. The hacker might convince the parties to pay into a different bank account or hand over confidential information.
3. Pre-installed malware: The hacker embeds malware in a new device, which infects the downstream customer’s systems with malicious code when they try to connect to the company network.
4. Corrupted firmware components: The hacker installs malicious code onto device firmware, granting them access to the target’s systems or network.
5. Stolen certificates: The hacker steals official product certificates to distribute malicious applications under the guise of legitimate software products.
6. Website builders: The hacker compromises your website via your website builder, for example, by installing redirect scripts that send visitors to a malicious website when they enter your URL.
7. Watering hole attacks: The hacker identifies supplier websites that receive a lot of traffic from the target business or businesses. Then, they insert malware into the watering hole site, exploiting weaknesses in the target’s defences to compromise their systems.
8. Third-party data stores: The hacker infiltrates the target’s third-party data centre to steal sensitive business or customer information. Hackers can sell the data or use it to compromise the supply chain further.
A supply chain attack doesn’t just affect a single business—it can spread across multiple organisations, causing widespread disruption. Any company that relies on third-party software, cloud services, products or external vendors is at risk. This makes supply chain security a priority for businesses of all sizes, not just large enterprises. In fact, smaller businesses are more likely to be targeted during a supply chain attack, as they are less likely to have complex security measures in place.
The Consequences of a Successful Attack
Once the attack has taken place, the businesses are left to pick up the pieces. These can have enormous, wide-reaching consequences for businesses, such as:
Financial Losses: Data breaches and system downtime can lead to significant financial damage. Companies may face ransom demands, legal fees, regulatory fines, and the cost of recovering lost data. In some cases, businesses also suffer from fraudulent transactions if attackers manipulate supplier payment systems.
Reputational Damage: Customers and partners expect businesses to protect their data. A breach through a supplier can undermine trust, leading to lost business and long-term reputational harm. High-profile attacks often attract media attention, further damaging a company’s credibility.
Operational Disruption: If critical software or services are compromised, businesses may experience downtime, production delays, or loss of customer access to essential platforms. Attackers can also use ransomware to lock systems, making them inaccessible until a payment is made.
Regulatory & Compliance Issues: Many industries have strict data protection regulations, such as GDPR and ISO 27001. If a supply chain breach exposes sensitive information, businesses may face legal penalties for failing to secure customer data. Organisations working with government or healthcare data must meet even higher security standards, making compliance a key concern.
Protecting Yourself from Supply Chain Attacks
Supply chain attacks are difficult to detect and even harder to stop once they’ve infiltrated a system. Plus, the risk of supply chain attacks is growing, and businesses can’t afford to take a passive approach. Securing both internal systems and third-party connections is essential for long-term protection. Gaining a Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus certificate is a great starting point.
Cyber Essentials is a UK government-backed certification that helps businesses protect themselves against common cyber threats. It provides a clear framework for improving security by covering areas such as firewalls, secure configuration, access control, malware protection, and software updates. Gaining Cyber Essentials certification demonstrates a commitment to cybersecurity, reducing the risk of attacks and increasing trust with customers and partners. It can also help organisations win contracts, particularly with the public sector and cautious companies in the supply chain, where strong security measures are required. Being listed on the Cyber Essentials database shows that a business takes cyber security seriously and has met recognised standards, reassuring clients and stakeholders that their data is handled securely.
An additional standard for cyber security is ISO 27001, which is an internationally recognised standard for information security management. It provides a structured approach to identifying, assessing, and mitigating risks across an organisation and its suppliers. By implementing ISO 27001, businesses establish strict controls over data access, encryption, and third-party security assessments, reducing the likelihood of an attack spreading through the supply chain. The certification also requires regular audits and continuous improvement, ensuring that security measures stay current as threats evolve.
You should also be training your staff to ensure they remain vigilant. Make cyber security part of the employee onboarding process for new staff, and ensure all existing staff have ongoing training to refresh their memories. Cyber security training could include internal presentations or videos from a training supplier. By completing your Cyber Essentials certificate with Business Defence Systems, we provide access to a training library of videos, and you can set targets with your staff to ensure all videos are completed.
But being secure doesn’t just end with your own security. Before working with a supplier, check their cybersecurity policies. A quick way to check this is to look for Cyber Essentials certification, which you can check the Cyber Essentials Certification database on the government website. Or you can request copies of ISO audits or ask them what security measures they have in place. You’ll quickly scope out whether the company takes security measures seriously from the responses you receive.
How Business Defence Systems Can Help
Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus are government-backed certifications that help businesses implement key security measures. Business Defence Systems simplifies the certification process with the CyberSmart Cyber Essentials Dashboard, ensuring businesses meet the necessary standards without unnecessary complexity. The dashboard has a step-by-step process for meeting the certification requirements, and there’s unlimited support. Plus, there’s a 100% guaranteed pass rate as the platform performs checks to ensure a pass before submission. Plus, we can help set up other security measures, such as firewalls, VPNs, penetration testing and more.
If you’re unsure where to start, our free cyber security audit allows you to have your cyber security setup audited by a human assessor. Our audit takes you through the main areas of cyber security, and our team will recommend steps to strengthen your security.
Conclusion & Next Steps
Supply chain attacks are a growing threat, affecting businesses of all sizes. Attackers are targeting vendors, suppliers, and third-party software providers as an entry point into larger networks. A single weak link in the supply chain can lead to data breaches, financial losses, and reputational damage.
Get started today by exploring how Business Defence Systems can help secure your business with Cyber Essentials or complete an audit to get started.