Supply Chian Attack is a type of cyberattack that target less-secure elements in the supply chain of an organization rather than attacking the organization directly. The goal is to infiltrate an organization’s network or systems by compromising a third-party vendor, supplier, or partner that has access to its data, software, or network infrastructure.
Instead of attacking the target organization directly, attackers compromise a trusted third party, such as a software provider, hardware supplier, or service contractor. This third party then becomes a conduit for delivering the malicious payload to the final target.
Supply chain attacks can be complex, involving multiple stages and affecting a large number of organizations. The attackers may insert malicious code or hardware at different stages of the supply chain, making detection difficult.
These attacks exploit the trust relationships between an organization and its suppliers. Since third-party vendors often have privileged access to an organization’s systems or sensitive data, they become an attractive target for attackers.
The impact of a supply chain attack can be significant, affecting not just the primary target but potentially thousands of other organizations that rely on the compromised third party.
Attackers infiltrated SolarWinds’ Orion software update mechanism, delivering malicious updates to over 18,000 customers, including government agencies and major corporations.
Resource: CISA Alert on SolarWinds
The “RockYou2024” password leak, where nearly 10 billion previously compromised credentials were compiled and posted on a hacking forum, highlights the significant supply chain risk posed by the aggregation, reuse, and public exposure of breached credentials across multiple platforms and services.
Resource: Nearly 10 Billion Passwords Leaked in Biggest Compilation of All Time
Public chatbots powered by LLMs can inadvertently expose sensitive internal information shared during interactions, exploiting the trust companies place in these AI services, which underscores the risks of relying on external AI platforms that may unintentionally leak confidential data through their learning and interaction processes.
Resource: OpenAI’s Custom Chatbots Are Leaking Their Secrets
Attackers compromised the Git server of PHP, attempting to insert a backdoor into the source code of the popular web scripting language.
Resource: ZDNet on PHP Git Server Hack
Lateral movement from an initial attack vector, such as spear phishing, to IoT or OT devices like cameras and printers, can also be seen as island hopping.
Resource: Krebs on Security Report
The breach was enabled by vulnerabilities in a sister property, RecordsCheck, which allowed attackers to exploit trust relationships between related services to access sensitive data.
Resource: National Public Data Breach: Only 134 Million Unique Emails Leaked and Company Acknowledges Incident