Introduction
All organisations should consider cyber supply chain risk management. If a supplier, manufacturer, distributor or retailer (i.e. businesses that constitute a cyber supply chain) are involved in products or services used by an organisation, there will be a cyber supply chain risk originating from those businesses. Likewise, an organisation will transfer any cyber supply chain risk they hold to their customers.
Effective cyber supply chain risk management ensures, as much as possible, the secure supply of products and services throughout their lifetime. This includes their design, manufacture, delivery, maintenance, decommissioning and disposal. As such, cyber supply chain risk management forms a significant component of any organisation’s overall cyber security strategy.
Managing the cyber supply chain
Cyber supply chain risk management can be achieved by identifying the cyber supply chain, understanding cyber supply chain risk, setting cyber security expectations, auditing for compliance, and monitoring and improving cyber supply chain security practices.
Identify the cyber supply chain
The first step in cyber supply chain risk management for an organisation is to identify their cyber supply chain. This includes identifying all suppliers, manufacturers, distributors and retailers, and where possible, their sub-contractors. Furthermore, it is important organisations know the value of data they process, store and communicate, as well as the value of any data they entrust to other businesses.
As a starting point, organisations should establish a list of suppliers, manufacturers, distributors and retailers they have business arrangements with. While an exhaustive list of such businesses, especially their sub-contractors, may not be possible, the identification of those responsible for products or services with security enforcing functions, privileged access, handling sensitive data, or will be used in sensitive locations should be prioritised.
Understand cyber supply chain risk
Following the establishment of a list of suppliers, manufacturers, distributors and retailers that organisations have business arrangements with, organisations should seek to understand the cyber supply chain risk that those businesses pose through established risk management practices. In many cases, cyber supply chain risk will be the result of foreign control or interference, poor security practices, a lack of transparency, enduring access or poor business practices. More information can be found on these topics in the Identifying Cyber Supply Chain Risks publication.
While the determination of cyber supply chain risk will often be the responsibility of individual organisations, in some cases the Government may deem a particular supplier, manufacturer, distributor or retailer, or one of their products or services, to be a national security concern. In such cases, there may be a specific direction issued in relation to managing the associated cyber supply chain risk. In particular, for non-corporate Commonwealth entities and critical infrastructure providers, the Protective Security Policy Framework and the Security of Critical Infrastructure Act 2018 respectively grant provisions for directions to be issued by the Government where national security concerns exist.
As a result of understanding their cyber supply chain risk, organisations should be able to develop both a list of trusted suppliers, manufacturers, distributors and retailers that can be used as well as a list of high risk suppliers, manufacturers, distributors and retailers that should not be used. It is important to note though that organisations should not only consider the cyber supply chain risk posed by other businesses but also the cyber supply chain risk that they pose to their customers.
Set cyber security expectations
Regardless of which suppliers, manufacturers, distributors or retailers are used, organisations should seek to establish cyber security expectations with all of these businesses. As part of this, cyber security expectations should be clearly documented in contracts or memorandum of understandings where possible in order to ensure that businesses are appropriately managing their own security posture, including their cyber supply chain risk. Furthermore, it is critical that such agreements stipulate the requirement for any cyber security incidents to be openly and transparently reported to their customers and appropriate authorities in a timely manner.
In many cases, cyber security expectations set out in contracts or memorandum of understandings should not be excessively restrictive; except where suppliers, manufacturers, distributors or retailers are involved in the provision or support to highly sensitive systems or facilities. Rather, cyber security expectations should be justifiable, achievable and proportional to the data being entrusted to other businesses or the role that their products or services play in an organisation’s systems or facilities. For example, organisations may seek businesses to demonstrate good faith efforts to implement the Cyber Security Principles and/or the Essential Eight Maturity Model.
Audit for compliance
Once cyber security expectations have been established with suppliers, manufacturers, distributors and retailers, it is important that organisations have confidence that those expectations are being met. One way to achieve such assurances is through routine audits or other forms of technical assessments. Provisions for such activities should be stipulated within contracts or memorandum of understandings (often referred to as a ‘right to audit’ clause) and can serve as a way to gain independent assurances of the security posture of businesses.
Monitor and improve cyber supply chain security practices
Ultimately, effective cyber supply chain risk management is based upon trusted partnerships between suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, retailers and their customers. Such partnerships can be strengthened through common cyber security goals, data sharing arrangements (such as sharing best practices and threat intelligence), assisting each other with responding to cyber security incidents and involving each other in cyber security exercises.
Further information
The Information Security Manual is a cyber security framework that organisations can apply to protect their systems and data from cyber threats. The advice in the Strategies to Mitigate Cyber Security Incidents, along with its Essential Eight, complements this framework.
Further information on cyber supply chain risk management is available in the following publications:
- Identifying Cyber Supply Chain Risks
- How to Manage Your Security When Engaging a Managed Service Provider
- Questions to Ask Managed Service Providers
- Cloud Computing Security for Executives
- Cloud Computing Security for Tenants.
Further information on cyber supply chain risk management is also available from the following sources:
- the Department of Home Affairs’ Protective Security Policy Framework as well as directions issued by the Secretary of the Department of Home Affairs to manage protective security risks to the Commonwealth
- the National Cyber Security Centre’s supply chain security guidance
- the National Institute of Science and Technology’s NISTIR 8276, Key Practices in Cyber Supply Chain Risk Management: Observations from Industry publication.
Contact details
If you have any questions regarding this guidance you can write to us or call us on 1300 CYBER1 (1300 292 371).