Supply Chains Cybersecurity Challenges

The global scope of cybersecurity incidences is rising sporadically. And as a manager, you should consider how resilient your business is with respect to the state of supply chain cybersecurity challenges.

Inference from a study by Argon Security indicates a steep increase in the frequency of supply chain cybersecurity attacks. In fine detail, the data points to a 300% upswing in the number of attacks through the year 2021 — in comparison with the attacks in the year 2020.

So, mitigating and managing cyber-attacks on supply chains are part of management efforts. And how should you manage the lurking challenges?

We cover five pillar points to help you concretize the scenarios challenging supply chains within the armpits of managing a business.

1. Harness the entire organization to understand the potential threats working with 3rd party vendors.

Businesses interact with third-party vendors across every department — or with employees and managers. No department should lag behind in the quest to build up knowledge on the register of potential threats.

Managers cannot avoid these risks. Businesses need to run on. And so, it requires navigating transactions with caution to help minimize instances of compromise that may arise therefrom.

The burden of sanctity is upon the management and staff under their supervision. Cybercrime perpetrators target the entire organization — no manager or employee should be unaware of the portfolio of threats.

First is the need to have an adequate understanding of the potential loopholes. And second, pull in efforts towards eliminating instances where third-party actors can act as conduits of risk aiming to compromise supply chains.

Here are key pointers to help assess whether the management and employees have an adequate grasp of the synopsis regarding threats — specifically ones that may arise with interaction with third-party vendors:

● New third parties and their businesses come with new risks as part of the challenges, albeit an increase in opportunities.

● Do you have a comprehensive plan to figure out the potential risks facing your supply chains?

● Do you maintain data for reference regarding trends and incidences of risk compromises on supply chains?

● Is there an activity whose outcome ensures that all management and employees receive training and refreshers around cybersecurity risks in supply chains?

The all-around outcome is a business whose management and staff are aware of the challenges but rest with reasonable assurance of what to do next in case a compromise manifests.

2. Mapping the organization’s vendors based on the risk potential

Mind maps create visual impressions of the risk profiles of vendors you work with. Visuals in the scope of the supply chain threats are better to demystify with mapped graphics.

Specifically, mind maps plot likelihoods against impacts of potential malice to your supply chains. And ideally, every vendor you work with requires profiling.

At the apex, mapping allows you to figure out risk premiums for covering your business against compromises of supply chains. There are three more pillars to mind maps:

● One is a better understanding of the risk environment your business thrives.

● Secondly, mapping increases your ability to make informed choices and priorities of the counter-strategies against supply chain threats.

● Lastly, yet very important, mapping helps with the ability to allocate scarce resource packages towards optimizing strategies to help you avert compromises that may charge at you via vendor channels.

Mapping vendors with respect to risk profiles is a great milestone in deciphering the risk levels that lurk within your vendor portfolios. By itself, mapping the vendors and risk levels accounts to a great deal of effort to comprehension of what is at stake — risks versus the gains.

3. Enabling business to run while keeping a high level of cybersecurity (for example: enabling marketing, finance, sales, and other departments to streamline their work while keeping the company safe from cyber threats)

Businesses have to carry out supply chain management with the full awareness that there are cyber threats facing them — known and unknown. Every management has a duty to rise above the threats, keep mitigating everything and thrive.

Managers have a duty to keep the courage and carry on with business. However, the strategy here is to be alive to the risks and mitigate their chances and opportunities of compromising your systems. Plus, they should bear in mind that the portfolio of risks cuts across departments collectively.

A study by the European Economic and Social Committee cites a comprehensive approach in the Netherlands in the cybersecurity arena. The key insight is a comprehensive and timely coordinated approach to mitigating cyber threats targeting supply chains.

Management ideally requires taking on a holistic approach — to run the business with full awareness of the potential threats. Yet the full awareness is a foul-proof cover to keep malice at bay, should any threat overcome the measures put in place to mitigate the consequences.

4. Planning for dark days. Creating an IR plan to manage cyber-attacks if they occur. (and it will)

As a cyber-risk manager, you have to be infinitely ready to counter cyberattacks on supply chains whenever they arise. In terms of risk estimates, no manager knows the minute when a compromise will strike. Yet, businesses carry on anticipating counter-measures- in case it happens.

Therefore, the surest strategy is to have a plan in place to help your business survive a cyber-attack. An IR or incidence response is a procedure with key steps to guide your management and staff through a cyber crisis.

An IR contains 6 key steps arranged chronologically in the form of an overview:

● Preparedness of management and staff in case an incident hits your business the next minute. How ready are managers and the staff they manage?

● Compromise identification, where you are able to establish whether or not there’s a breach endangering your supply chain systems. It should be clear in time and the level of impact across user departments.

● Containing a breach in the form of a cyber-attack. On this, we lay emphasis on a confident approach — locating affected system areas, disconnecting them, and resolving the compromises. Utmost, avoid the panic mode — where you delete everything instantly.

● Eradicate the compromise completely. Ideally, approach this with a keen interest in establishing the root cause of the entire lapse. Document the initial lapse. And finally, implement resolution by patching systems, as well as hardening and making updates.

● Recovering and restoration of systems back to normal business operations after clearing the effects of the cyber compromise. This should be done in full confidence after clearing a compromise of the systems.

● Post-response analysis, meeting, and lesson learning. Once the entire compromise is over, hold a brief with the incidence response team. And ideally, allow the documentation of lessons by managers and staff for future reference.

5. Maintaining a high level of cybersecurity throughout the years

While it is not the main business of every business to wait for every cyber-attack out there, imperatively, it should be within reasonable scope to maintain a very high level of preparedness — constantly.

The promise is — it pays back to maintain a high level of awareness. Managers must find an absolute truce in the claim here and set aside budgets for system upgrades, management and staff training, mock-up IRs, and every drill aiming at keeping the business alive to the dangers of cyber-attacks.

The reality of the devastating outcomes and impacts should be a catalyst to help build knowledge bases and ingrown staff resilience towards the impending challenges. Documenting updates to recent attacks is also a pivotal bridge to help you secure your gains. It helps move the organization from the unknown to the known.

Plus, another key fact is linkages with firms with real experience managing a crisis. Nothing beats experience at any level! On that note, live exchange visits are key. Else, virtual focus group discussions may suffice. At the bottom line, never wait for a compromise to react. As a good manager, take action way ahead before attacks render you helpless.

Conclusion:

Managing supply chain cyber security risks is a complex and daunting challenge. Having said that, organizations that are willing to work in a systematic approach will find be able to mitigate threats, adapt quickly to changes and streamline their organizational work process in these days’ business environment, and respond swiftly if an incident occurs.