Security News > 2021 > April > The Logistics Supply Chain is Being Targeted by Both Cybercriminals and Nation States
Attacks against the supply chain have been growing in quantity and gravity for several years, culminating in SolarWinds.
Most discussion has focused on the software supply chain, but a new study shows that the physical logistics supply chain is equally subject, and susceptible, to cyberattacks.
The potential for ransomware in logistics attacks was highlighted by the accidental disruption of Danish shipping giant Maersk by NotPetya in 2017.
There have been numerous direct ransomware attacks against other shipping companies - including MSC, Australia's Toll, France's CMA CGM, and COSCO. According to today's BlueVoyant report, logistics firms can now expect an average of one month's disruption every 3.7 years; 72% of logistics firms have suffered from disruptions; and there were 290 attacks against supply chain firms in 2019 alone.
"Shipping and logistics are vulnerable as a sector because they are targeted both by nation-state groups as well as cybercriminals. Geopolitical tensions can be disruptive and spark attacks or interference in shipping businesses, such as incidents resulting from issues like Brexit and ongoing US-China trade disputes," warns the report.
"NotPetya," says the BlueVoyant report, "Was an especially damaging case, and subsequent coverage of Maersk's experience has implied that it was spectacular enough to serve as a wake-up call for the logistics industry. More than three years later, the sector remains vulnerable to malicious cyber activity, and especially and specifically vulnerable to ransomware attacks."