Supply Chains Cyber Attacks Study Using Solar Winds as Case Study (Essay Sample)

SUPPLY CHAINS CYBER ATTACKS STUDY USING SOLAR WINDS AS CASE STUDY
Name
University
Professor
Subject
Date
Introduction
With supply chain attacks happening all over the world supply chains can be in danger of being a victim. Supply chains need to make sure that they have set up a cyber risk management plan that can help identify any potential threats to an organization. What is the supply chain? It’s a fused together of different organizations or players who align their business operations, goals, objectives and sections of their systems to third party players, commanding the point of origin to consumption in business. The flow and movement of goods, services and necessary knowhow and information in the upstream and downstream linkages when well managed certes value in the form of products and services. Operations are now digitized in most organizations for efficiency and cost optimization needs (Shivajee et al., 2019).
Therefore supply chain management has to involve the managerial expertise that is needed to operationalize the objectives of the company by interlinking the suppliers and customers to the company, delivering product and business value at considerable lesser costs. Such depends on the effective use of information technology (IT) tools for competitive edge (Singh et al. 2019) It involves the active management of all the associated supply chain activities right from product development, sourcing, production and logistics and relevant information systems that ensure efficient coordination for maximum value, and considerable competitive advantage. Mangan and Lalwani (2016) summarize the intentions of the Supply chain Management process as one that designed to ensure the right product, in right quantity, positioned at the right place, and within the right time framework, to be issued to the right buyer at the right and optimized price/cost.
So, “Cyber risk” is defined as “an operational risk to information and technology assets.” And this risk is one that has consequences that erode and affect the “integrity, confidentiality and availability of such information and its systems.” Disruption of business processes and monetary loss are a major section of the consequences of these acts. And its two pronged: can impact negatively both digital and physical assets. Risks must be classified by the source: internal or external vulnerabilities; mismanagement of information network systems and naivety among personnel and potential areas of weakness could be external third party partners. So many other avenues could be the source of cyber-attacks, and not just hackers. Cyber security on the other hand is the total technologies, processes, and practices used and established to ensure the continual protection of data, networks, and other digital and physical assets from either intrusive attacks, malicious damage and unauthorized access.
Definition/Background of Supply Chain Attacks (aka Cyber Attacks)
One therefore must come to the understanding of the supply chain attacks commonly referred to as the cyber-attacks. Singh et al, (2019), describes the current and future SC makeup to be autonomous in nature, calling it the “Internet of Things” (IOTs). There is a bigger shift in traditional supply chains to those of today and tomorrow. And the biggest driver of the wide range between the two models is Artificial intelligence. AI, as it is known, drives real time data, in end to end encrypted format for current supply chains. With Technology becoming an increasing pert of our lives and a massive determinant in the survival of businesses all around the globe, current and future supply chains are now an ecosystem loaded with timely data, that a accompany can exploit for profit. The network carries with it high interconnectivity through the IOTs, that links yup supply chains on timely fashion. The demand, availability production, distribution abilities of companies can now be regulated real time enabling the efficient flow of materials downstream in any supply chains. These supply chains as Calatayud et al., (2019) puts it have “self-thinking capabilities” that enable timely decision making, on a global scale. Therefor one needs to grasp the reality of what’s known as Cyber Physical Systems (CPS). For information sharing purposes, these are an integrated computation and physical processes that unify the digital space and have the physical components, network systems, computers, software, all linked up together with other devices and sensors to enable faster communication and operations (Humayed et al., 2017). It’s the backbone pf cashless and paper transactions, which has brought together third party vendors, banking institutions and government agencies, revolutionizing how business is done.
We have what’s commonly referred to as the 4th Industrial Revolution. Here, data is the new mine, the new gold. With high stakes and geopolitical rivalry already established among dominant powers like the USA, Russia, China, European Union and India alongside others, we are witnessing complex but highly profitable connectivity and competition in the realms of 5G network systems. Smart manufacturing that entails robotics hardware and drone operations, all fused together with clean energy goals and electrification of the planet, will none the less trigger more intense rivalries. And with such comes shakeups in the supply chains as we know them. For example, in the 2020 period, the world has seen a massive shift and disruption in the supply chains as they knew it. It all began in the past USA administration, under President Trump, who sought out a recalibration of how China did its business and the entangled way or nature the USA was with the communist state. Through disruptive measures like high tariffs and economic sanctions like in the case and dispute in Hong Kong, the instability and unreliable nature of supply chains grew. The resilience of the SCs was strained. Then Covid 19 struck! And with it came more uncertainty.
Risk involved of being a victim in a supply chain attack
So with the advent of smart advanced technologies, we are witnessed a union of digitalization with physical action to revolutionize our manufacturing sector as we know it. With the interconnection happening, the whole system therefore avails itself for a cyber risk assault, which large portions of industry players haven’t been prepared for. Why is it the case? The answer lies partly in the lack of understanding and wrong attitude toward the IT sector in company operations. Such is prevalent amongst the company leadership teams. In a 2020 research interview, a total of 30 company cyber security industry leaders were interviewed on the cybersecurity risks facing supply chains, by the Global Supply Chain Institute that’s based in the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (Haslam, 2020).
The results agave the picture that portrayed the complete lack of understanding as to what was needed to build cyber-secure supply chain networks and the need for supply chain executives to properly asses and understand the cyber risks that harm their companies. Cybersecurity is a massive challenge facing supply chains and companies. And it’s so because there is a huge tension created between the desire to come up with effective work action plans that reduce risks on one hand and action plans that maximize on efficiency using the available digital tools (Haslam, 2020). No CEO wants to be left behind in the technological adoption race that could give the business a competitive edge in business. But on the other hand the deeper the adoption of cost cutting technologies one embraces, the higher the sophistication the cyber warfare the company contends with! So the tension exists and proper measures have to be taken to manage cybersecurity effectively, have clear understanding of the core aspects of cyber and lastly exploit examples of success or failures form the cyber security experiences (Haslam, 2020).. The risks attribute to hacks are massive. Challenges that are as a result of being connected to cyber Physical Systems are majorly lack of foresight when it comes to intelligence gatherings of organizational threats. A failure to carry out proper third-party audit check on vendors and lax security controls are additional risks and outcomes. Any supply chain partner could be the conduit in a way of such attacks either because of present software errors or vulnerabilities in their systems that are multiplied through information exchange mechanisms (Woods and Bochman, 2018).
Because organizations are interlinked through digital communication links, all members within a supply chain are deemed to be as strong as their weakest member. Such is because of the shared information and security coding links that bind them together. So we have risks and consequent risks; these that happen directly to the targeted company and those that are as a result of; the aftershocks that inhibit those who share the same digital interlinks. A Verizon (2014) report highlighted how hackers only have to pinpoint the weakest link amongst the member companies sharing a digital link, and gain leverage to strike. The smallest companies are targeted more often due to their size within the link. But through them, larger companies are in the crosshairs. So the responsibility lies onto the whole team to vastly protect it systems, but in a way favors the criminal elements that just need to narrow down to what’s weak! And therefore any new and emerging risk should be seriously confronted and mitigated.
Companies have had their brand perceptions ratings crumble out of hacks. Consumer trust has been eroded out o...