Cyber Brief: Supply Chain Risk and Patch Management Pressure

Cybersecurity activity today highlights continued pressure on organisations to manage third-party risk, address cloud configuration weaknesses, and keep pace with critical security updates. The common theme remains visibility and control across increasingly complex environments.

Supply Chain Attacks Continue to Target Trusted Services

Security teams are reporting continued attempts by threat actors to compromise organisations through suppliers and service providers. Rather than targeting end organisations directly, attackers are exploiting trusted relationships to gain access to systems, data, or downstream customers.

These incidents reinforce the importance of understanding who has access to systems, what controls suppliers operate, and how quickly issues can be detected and contained if a partner is compromised.

Why it matters
Supply chain attacks can bypass perimeter defences entirely. Without regular assurance and validation of third-party controls, organisations may inherit risk they cannot see until it is too late.

Source: Industry security reporting

Cloud Misconfigurations Remain a Leading Cause of Exposure

New analysis shows misconfigured cloud services continue to be a major contributor to security incidents. Publicly exposed storage, overly permissive access controls, and unused services left active are all being routinely identified and exploited.

As cloud environments scale, manual oversight becomes harder, increasing the likelihood that configuration drift goes unnoticed over time.

Why it matters
Cloud security failures are rarely caused by advanced attacks. They are more often the result of simple oversights that persist. Regular reviews and testing are essential to ensure controls remain effective as environments change.

Source: Cloud security research

Organisations Struggle to Keep Pace with Critical Patching

Security teams are also facing growing pressure to deploy patches quickly as vulnerabilities are disclosed at a steady pace. Limited resources, legacy systems, and lack of visibility are contributing to delays, increasing the window of opportunity for exploitation.

This challenge is particularly acute in environments where asset inventories are incomplete or responsibilities are unclear.

Why it matters
Unpatched vulnerabilities remain one of the most reliable attack paths for threat actors. Strong asset management and prioritisation are critical to reducing exposure without overwhelming teams.

Source: Vulnerability management commentary

Today’s Key Actions

1. Review supplier access and third-party security assurances
2. Check cloud environments for unnecessary exposure and configuration drift
3. Validate patching processes and asset visibility
4. Prioritise risks based on business impact, not just volume

Secarma Insight

As environments grow more interconnected, the biggest risks often come from areas assumed to be “handled” — suppliers, cloud platforms, or routine maintenance. Proactive assessment and testing help organisations regain visibility, validate controls, and reduce risk before issues escalate.

If you would like to explore how this applies to your organisation, speak to the Secarma team:
https://secarma.com/contact