Cyber security and attacks in the logistics industry

Cyber security services company BlueVoyant has published a new report on cyber security in the logistics industry. Its analysis of 20 worldwide shipping and logistics companies overviews why many organisations in the supply chain sector urgently need to look at how they can become more resilient against cyber threats, given the sensitivity of distribution networks to disruption and the global reliance on supply chain firms.

Global health is unequivocally dependent upon the immediate, safe, and effective distribution of the Covid-19 vaccine. As world economies operate by the grace of the global shipping sector, logistics firms are quite literally responsible for carrying the world through this current crisis, making timely and secure operations paramount. So much so that on February 24, 2021, the Biden administration signed into effect an Executive Order on securing America’s supply chain.

Highly sensitive to disruption, logistics firms are especially vulnerable to ransomware; malware that can bring operations to a frightening standstill. Four years following the NotPetya supply chain attack, and with the vaccine supply chain in the global spotlight, logistics firms still have much to learn from one of the most devastating cyberattacks in history.

This report outlines:

The dramatic number of supply chain and logistic companies that still have unsecured remote desktops (the No. 1 ransomware attack vulnerability), and the equally dramatic number of companies lacking the most basic protections against email phishing attacks – despite the devastating example of the WannaCry ransomware attack against Maersk in 2017.

The dramatic increase in the number of ransomware attacks on supply chain and logistics companies in the last two years alone.

The alarming number of supply chain and logistics companies targeted by attackers with some form of inbound attack and the equally alarming number of targeted attempts on login or portal pages.

The cyber security and risk standards and frameworks that are an immediate imperative to secure the readiness of the sector and protect the global supply chain.

In order to manage these complicated, high-volume networks, supply chain, and logistics companies are increasingly reliant on highly automated systems that ensure “just-in-time” delivery across roads, ports, airports, and via rail, air, and maritime freight. These systems make the supply chain and logistics sector incredibly vulnerable to cyberattacks.

Click here to download the report and to learn what this sector can do to bolster the American supply chain and secure this critical sector against future cyberattacks.