Introduction

Thanks to logistics companies, the base of modern commerce. They manage complex supply chains, process unimaginable volumes of data and are often caught between many vendors, customers, and technologies. But here’s the scary part, a lot of logistics companies are heavily dependent on third-party vendors for running their business. From fleet management systems to warehouse inventory platforms — or even those boring old software tools that we all forget (until it breaks) — third-party integrations are anywhere you look.

The problem? You get breached when your third-party vendor gets breached. Logistics companies are particularly susceptible to these attacks because they prioritize efficiency over security (I understand, time is money). But in the threats of today? That’s a dangerous gamble.

Third-Party Risks Explained

Third-party risk is an equation of sorts:

Your organization’s security == Your cybersecurity vulnerabilities + your supplier’s vulnerabilities

With every new vendor a logistics company partners with, or system they integrate, some level of access is granted. Perhaps it’s sending delivery information or live GPS tracking. Or it could be something more mainstream, like payroll software. Either way, vendors are a backdoor into your primary systems. And if that door isn’t secured properly, attackers will waltz through it faster than you can say, What’s our incident response plan again?

What makes third-party risks especially nasty is:

• Blinded vulnerabilities: You have no control over the security of your vendors.
• Cross-system access: Cookies for the Enemy Wider attack surfaces with integrations.
• Proximity to data leakage: Immense amounts of your data are typically supplied directly to the vendors.

Consider the notorious Target breach of 2013. You’re probably tired of hearing it but the lessons are timeless. The good ol’ HVAC vendor pitched to the group — yes, the folks in charge of the air conditioning, were hacked. And that one weakness cost Target $200 million-plus and compromised millions of customers’ data. If you’re thinking, Well, we’re not Target, then you are already missing the point. Attackers don’t care.

For logistics companies, the stakes are higher still. Why? Because shoddy vendor security can halt deliveries in their tracks, disrupt global supply chains, and destroy customer trust in one fell swoop.

Case Studies

Case 1: Fiasco of Freight Management

For example, I worked with one mid-sized logistics firm that suffered a ransomware attack. But here’s the rub — the breach didn’t occur on their network. They were originating from their third-party freight management system. Attackers also took advantage of a weak API connection the vendor used, pivoting through their systems until they locked down the full platform.

• Outcome: Fleet operations shut down for three days.
• Cost: Millions of dollars in delayed shipping fees and loss of reputation.
• Cause: Vendor had not patched a known vulnerability, after repeated warnings from their clients (my team, included).

Case 2: The IoT Nightmare

In a different case, a large logistics corporation integrated IoT trackers into its warehousing system. Sounds smart, right? Except the IoT vendor shipped default admin passwords… on all of the devices. It was virtually an invitation to attackers, who leveraged the hacked devices to sniff network traffic.

• Outcome: Required complete replacements for 15,000 devices.
• Cost: Classified data likely stolen — but no one knows what or where.
• Reason: Seller’s poor password practices and also a set-it-and-neglect-it mindset.

Quick Take

If you’re pressed for time (and who’s not in this industry?), here’s the takeaway:

• Third-party risks are frequently downplayed but can lead to catastrophic breaches.
• Vet your vendors like your business relies on it — because it does.
• Always request all evidence of their level of security and patching practices.

Security Best Practices

Start with Vendor Assessment

Before signing contracts:

• Conduct a security audit on their systems and software platforms.
• Investigate whether they periodically patch vulnerabilities (and not just tell you they do).
• Check whether they have written incident response plans.

Put their feet to the fire — and don’t be shy about walking away if their answers suck.

Implement Appropriate Access Controls

You wouldn’t hand the keys to your warehouse to just anyone without some level of trust — so why allow vendors access to your most critical systems without restrictions?

• Use least privilege models. Limit what vendors see to only what they absolutely have to.
• Regularly review vendor access logs, and revoke inactive or suspicious permissions.
• Use multi-factor authentication (MFA) everywhere. Yes, even the mundane things.

Contractual Obligations

Yawn, I know, contracts are boring, but they could save your ass in court.

• Build strong data security provisions into your vendor agreements.
• Request cyber insurance from vendors with high risk. No exceptions.

Continuous Monitoring

Trusting is one thing; trusting without verification? That’s negligence.

• Watch for irregularities in vendor systems — particularly during periods of data exchange.
• Protect APIs with solid encryption (and for chrissakes, get rid of ancient SSL standards).
• Flag activities of incoming and outgoing connections for abnormal patterns through automated tools.

Pro tip: treat every vendor like they’re going to get breached at some point. Plan your defense response around this.

Future Considerations

If I’ve learned anything from my years of consulting, it’s that threats outpace compliance checklists.

Going forward, logistics companies must prepare for more sophisticated attacks against them, especially from nation-state actors seeking to disrupt supply chains. Emergent cybersecurity technologies such as blockchain-based supply chain tracking (to which I remain skeptical) and hardware-level monitoring tools may assist in closing some of those gaps, but proactivity is still paramount.

The industry needs to be responsible, too. The efficiency-over-security mindset that has dominated logistics for decades is no longer tenable — because the cost of a breach now is simply too high. It’s high time to handle cybersecurity as a subset of your fundamentals.

Lastly

I’ve just returned from DefCon and I learnt one thing. In a speech in the hardware hacking village, someone said:

Every broken lock has its story to tell…

It resonated because I found that all the breaches I’ve ever investigated had one thing in common: someone failed to take security seriously enough. If you are in logistics and you are not looking closely at your third-party relationships, you are essentially inviting people to look through your glass doors.

Be proactive. Be relentless. And for goodness’ sake, patch your systems — and your vendors’ systems.

Cybersecurity is not a checkbox; it is a survival skill.

(Time for another coffee).