Are hardware supply chain attacks “cyber attacks?”
Summary: Cisco Talos examined hardware supply chain attacks, in which adversaries infiltrate the supply of devices or the physical manufacturing process to build in security flaws, faulty parts, or backdoors such as malicious microchips on a circuit board, in contrast to software supply chain attacks like SolarWinds, Log4j, and MOVEit. Talos said the problem spans several sectors because an adversary would likely need to physically infiltrate or tamper with manufacturing or logistics, and noted little synchronization and partnership between logistics, cybersecurity, and manufacturing companies.
Bottom line: Physical tampering can happen in a warehouse awaiting shipment or in the back of a tractor-trailer hauling devices, and the protective technologies Talos names - smart containers, real-time monitoring, automated security checkpoints - are expensive for security teams already stretched for budget and human capital.
Read the original at Cisco Talos ↗
- Topics
- Supply Chain & AppSec
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