Latest news with #RyanSherstobitoff
Techday NZ
26-06-2025
- Business
- Techday NZ
Most firms unprepared for rising supply chain cyber threats
A new report has found that 88% of cybersecurity leaders are concerned about supply chain cyber risks, with most organisations using supply chain risk management approaches that are not keeping pace with the threat landscape. The 2025 Supply Chain Cybersecurity Trends Survey, published by SecurityScorecard, draws on responses from nearly 550 CISOs and security professionals worldwide. The report highlights a significant increase in breaches involving third parties and a concentration of risk across technology and infrastructure providers. Increasing third-party risks According to the survey, third-party involvement in security breaches has doubled, with incidents rising from 15% to nearly 30%, as also detailed in the 2025 Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report. The reliance on a small group of external providers has resulted in what the report describes as an "extreme concentration of risk," with the potential for a single provider's compromise to affect thousands of organisations at once. Ryan Sherstobitoff, Field Chief Threat Intelligence Officer at SecurityScorecard, addressed the evolving nature of these risks by stating: Supply chain cyberattacks are no longer isolated incidents; they're a daily reality. Yet breaches persist because third-party risk management remains largely passive, focused on assessments and compliance checklists rather than action. This outdated approach fails to operationalize the insights it gathers. What's needed is a shift to active defense: supply chain incident response capabilities that close the gap between third-party risk teams and security operations centers, turning continuous monitoring and threat intelligence into real-time action. Static checks won't stop dynamic threats—only integrated detection and response will. Survey findings The report details several key statistics. More than 70% of organisations reported experiencing at least one material third-party cybersecurity incident in the past year, while 5% said they had suffered ten or more such incidents. Coverage of nth-party risk remains low, with fewer than half of organisations monitoring cybersecurity across even half of their supply chain tiers. A substantial 79% reported that less than half of their nth-party supply chain is covered by cybersecurity programmes. Only 26% of organisations include incident response in their supply chain cybersecurity frameworks, with most relying on periodic vendor assessments or cyber insurance instead. Respondents cited difficulty managing large volumes of data and prioritising issues as a major challenge, with 40% identifying this as their leading concern. Recommendations for supply chain security The findings led to several recommendations for organisations seeking to strengthen supply chain cyber risk management. SecurityScorecard advises integrating threat intelligence throughout the vendor ecosystem, allowing for real-time identification and assessment of risks such as ransomware and zero-day threats. The report also suggests the establishment of a dedicated supply chain incident response workflow. This would include clear role definitions and communication pathways, with regular testing and refinement of processes as part of a broader incident response strategy. Additionally, implementing vendor tiering is advised, prioritising high-risk dependencies and identifying single points of failure to enable more targeted mitigation. The report emphasises the need for a shared approach across business functions. Apportioning responsibility for supply chain cybersecurity beyond the remit of IT teams alone, organisations are encouraged to embed security considerations into procurement, legal, operations, and leadership decision-making. Research methodology The findings are derived from survey responses by 546 IT Directors and above, hailing from a range of industries and representing businesses with annual revenue from under $200 million to more than $5 billion. The research focused on quantitative analysis, with qualitative insights also provided by participants. SecurityScorecard's report underlines that attackers seek to exploit any single vulnerability within increasingly interconnected supply chains, while defenders must strive to secure all connections within often complex vendor networks. The report concludes that a transition to integrated, proactive supply chain monitoring and response is necessary to address persistent gaps between risk assessments and operational security outcomes.
Techday NZ
22-05-2025
- Business
- Techday NZ
Fintech sector faces mounting third-party security breach risks
SecurityScorecard has published new research indicating that almost 42% of data breaches impacting top fintech companies can be traced back to third-party vendors, with a further 12% linked to fourth-party exposures. The findings, drawn from an analysis of 250 leading fintech firms worldwide, highlight the systemic risks facing the financial sector's supply chain despite robust internal cybersecurity practices. The report, titled Defending the Financial Supply Chain: Strengths and Vulnerabilities in Top Fintech Companies, exposes a growing separation between strong internal controls and vulnerabilities introduced through external partners. Fintech companies emerged as the industry with the strongest overall security posture, registering a median score of 90 in SecurityScorecard's assessment. More than half (55.6%) achieved an "A" rating. However, these scores did not fully shield the industry from cyber intrusions. According to the report, 18.4% of analysed fintech companies experienced breaches that were publicly reported, and over a quarter of these organisations (28.2%) suffered multiple incidents. Technology products and services featured in 63.9% of third-party breaches, with file transfer software and cloud platforms identified as the primary points of compromise. Application security and DNS health deficiencies were noted as the most prevalent weaknesses within the sector. Nearly half of the firms (46.4%) scored the lowest in application security assessments. These weaknesses included unsafe redirect chains, misconfigured storage, and missing Sender Policy Framework (SPF) records. Ryan Sherstobitoff, Senior Vice President of SecurityScorecard's STRIKE Threat Research and Intelligence Unit, commented on the findings: "Fintech companies anchor global finance, but one exposed vendor can take down critical infrastructure. Third-party breaches aren't edge cases - they reveal structural risk. In fintech, that means operational outages across payment systems, digital asset platforms, and core financial infrastructure." The report highlights that the threat emanating from an organisation's indirect partners - referred to as fourth-party suppliers - now exceeds double the global average, making up 11.9% of incidents in the fintech sector. These risks underscore the complexity and depth of digital supply chains in financial technology. In response to its analysis, the SecurityScorecard STRIKE team issued a series of recommendations for fintech companies to bolster their cybersecurity defences across the supply chain ecosystem. Among the recommendations is the need to strengthen oversight of both third- and fourth-party risks. The team advises that, "Fintech companies should tier vendors based on exposure and breach history, not just spend or business value. Disclosing downstream dependencies and requiring incident notification clauses in contracts can reduce cascading risk from fourth-party breaches." Securing shared infrastructure and the technical tools that enable financial operations is also critical. The team states, "File transfer software, cloud storage platforms and customer communication tools were the most common vectors for third-party breaches. Fintechs must audit these integrations regularly and require partners to demonstrate secure implementation practices." Another key area is the remediation of deficiencies in application security and Domain Name System (DNS) settings. According to the report, "Nearly half of fintechs scored lowest in application security. Unsafe redirect chains, misconfigured storage and missing SPF records were common. Remediating these foundational weaknesses should be a priority, starting with customer-facing assets." The report also advises enforcing robust credential protection measures. It recommends, "Credential stuffing campaigns and typosquatting attacks impacted a majority of firms. Enforcing MFA, monitoring for reused credentials and taking down spoofed domains are essential to protect users and prevent cross-platform compromise." Finally, the research suggests that companies which have experienced multiple breaches should be considered higher-risk and subject to extra scrutiny. The report notes, "Companies with multiple breaches accounted for the majority of total incidents. Vendors with prior breach history, especially those with known third-party exposures, should face enhanced scrutiny during onboarding and renewals." The study encompassed a range of fintech segments, including firms specialising in payments, digital assets, neobanking, financial planning, and technology infrastructure. The companies involved were selected for their international presence, influence within the industry, and operational scale.
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
SecurityScorecard 2025 Global Third-Party Breach Report Reveals Surge in Vendor-Driven Attacks
NEW YORK, March 26, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--SecurityScorecard today released the 2025 Global Third-Party Breach Report. Using the world's largest proprietary risk and threat data set, SecurityScorecard's STRIKE Threat Intelligence Unit analyzed 1,000 breaches across industries and regions to uncover key attack patterns, measure the impact of third-party security failures and identify the most commonly exploited vendor relationships. Ryan Sherstobitoff, SVP of SecurityScorecard's STRIKE Threat Research and Intelligence, said: "Threat actors are prioritizing third-party access for its scalability. Our research shows ransomware groups and state-sponsored attackers increasingly leveraging supply chains as entry points. To stay ahead of these threats, security leaders must move from periodic vendor reviews to real-time monitoring to contain these risks before they escalate throughout their supply chain." Key Findings: Surging Risk: 35.5% of all breaches in 2024 were third-party related. This figure is likely conservative due to underreporting and misclassification. Tech Sector Shift: 46.75% of third-party breaches involved technology products and services, a drop from last year's 75%, signaling a diversification of attack surfaces. Industry Impact: Retail & hospitality saw the highest third-party breach rate (52.4%), followed by the technology industry (47.3%) and the energy and utilities industry (46.7%). Healthcare in the Spotlight: The healthcare sector had the most third-party breaches (78) but a below-average rate (32.2%). Global Hotspots: Singapore (71.4%) had the highest third-party breach rate, followed by the Netherlands (70.4%) and Japan (60%). The U.S. reported a lower rate (30.9%), falling 4.6% below the global average. Ransomware Connection: 41.4% of ransomware attacks now start through third parties. The ransomware group C10p stands out as the most prolific user of third-party access vectors. Actionable Strategies to Reduce Third-Party Breach Risk Based on third-party breach patterns, SecurityScorecard offers these targeted recommendations for security teams: Match Risk Management to Your Risk Profile: Third-party risk varies by industry, geography, technology and organizational structure. Security strategies should be tailored to these factors for effective risk management. Mitigate Fourth-Party Risk: Require vendors to maintain strong third-party risk management (TPRM) programs, include TPRM requirements in contracts and recognize that poor vendor security exposes your organization to fourth-party threats. Demand "Secure by Design" Technology: Ensure security features are built-in, not optional. Strengthen procurement standards and support CISA's Secure by Design initiative when selecting vendors. Harden High-Risk Infrastructure: Prioritize protection of file transfer software, cloud infrastructure, industry-specific services and VPNs. Implement prompt patching, multi-factor authentication (MFA) and continuous security assessments. Disrupt Ransomware Supply Chains: Paying ransoms fuels future attacks, creates legal risks and often fails to restore data. Strengthening defenses and refusing to pay ransoms protect both organizations and the broader security community. For more in-depth analysis and to download the report, visit: Methodology The findings in this report are based on a multi-source analysis of open-source intelligence (OSINT), security research, lawsuits, corporate filings, government disclosures, mainstream news media and underground criminal forums. This breach sample came from SecurityScorecard's intelligence feed, which is used in SecurityScorecard's SCDR platform to inform risk scoring and initiate incident response workflows. Unlike other reports that rely solely on self-reported data, this study integrates real-world breach intelligence gathered by SecurityScorecard's STRIKE Threat Intelligence team. Most breaches in the sample were not third-party related—this was intentional to provide a broader comparison sample. About SecurityScorecard SecurityScorecard created Supply Chain Detection and Response (SCDR), transforming how organizations defend against the fastest-growing threat vector—supply chain attacks. Our industry-leading security ratings serve as the foundation and core strength, while SCDR continuously monitors third-party risks using our factor-based ratings, automated assessments and proprietary threat intelligence, to resolve threats before they become breaches. MAX enables response and remediation capability, working through our service partners to protect the entire supply chain ecosystem while strengthening operational resilience, enhancing third-party risk management and mitigating concentrated risk. Trusted by over 3,000 organizations—including two-thirds of the Fortune 100—and recognized as a trusted resource by the U.S. Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). Backed by Evolution Equity Partners, Silver Lake Partners, Sequoia Capital, GV, NGP, Intel Capital and Riverwood Capital, SecurityScorecard delivers end-to-end supply chain cybersecurity that safeguards business continuity. Learn more at or follow us on LinkedIn. View source version on Contacts Media Contact Allison Knight10Fold for SecurityScorecardsecurityscorecard@
