When you craft a dish in the kitchen, your primary ingredients certainly matter. But how much do you think about where each of those ingredients comes from? Do you give thought to the ingredients in those ingredients?

These are supply chain questions, and the example mirrors your software supply chain. With the widespread use of open-source software and third-party dependencies, securing your software supply chain is critical.

In this post, we’ll look at what makes up your software supply chain. Along the way, we’ll identify common threats to the software supply chain and discuss basic strategies to secure it.

What is the software supply chain?

The software supply chain refers to the complete ecosystem of a piece of software. It extends well beyond the basic source code of the software, including any and all dependencies that are integrated during the development process — third-party libraries, frameworks, and other software components that contribute to the final product.

Within your software supply chain, you have application dependencies. These are the direct software components your application uses. Each component, in turn, may rely on other libraries, creating a complex web of dependencies that can potentially run dozens of levels deep.

Your software supply chain also includes tools used in your continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD) pipeline. These are the tools you use for testing, integrating, building, and deploying your software changes. Modern CI/CD pipelines are packed with tools — open-source and proprietary — from vendors and organizations around the world. Examples of tool capabilities include:

• Infrastructure as code (IaC) scanning
• Container image scanning
• Image registry scanning and integrations
• Kubernetes admission controllers
• Runtime image scanning

By understanding and managing the components that make up your software, you will be better equipped to maintain the integrity and security of your entire software supply chain.

Common threats to the software supply chain

As organizations think about the security of their software, they often focus solely on the parts of the software that they write the code for. However, securing your software means addressing threats that may be present not only in your code but in your supply chain. These software supply chain threats have the potential to severely disrupt your operations or compromise sensitive data.

How threats are introduced

It’s not uncommon for supply chain threats to be introduced via compromised components. Often, these are libraries or tools that have been tampered with and then unknowingly integrated into software by application developers and builders.

Attackers might also exploit weaknesses during the transfer of data or target software between processes.

The potential impact of software supply chain attacks

Software supply chain attacks can lead to grave outcomes. These include data breaches, unauthorized system access, and operational downtime. The ripple effects of a software supply chain attack can damage customer trust, invite legal consequences, and result in severe financial repercussions.

Notable examples of software supply chain attacks

Of the many software supply chain attacks that have made the news in recent years, here are some of the most widely known examples:

• SolarWinds Orion Platform: Attackers gained unauthorized access to the SolarWinds network and then inserted malicious code into the Orion Platform system that would open a backdoor to users’ systems. With the malicious code integrated as part of a subsequent software update, nearly 30,000 businesses and government agencies that used the Orion Platform downloaded and installed the update, unwittingly compromising their networks.
• Log4j: A vulnerability in a logging module for Java applications allowed attackers to perform remote code execution, giving them access to target machines. The scope of this vulnerability was massive, as the Log4j module was a dependency used by countless applications and servers, including many Apache projects, Elastic Logstash, Minecraft, and various VMware products.

How to secure your software supply chain

Securing your software supply chain involves integrating secure practices throughout the software development life cycle (SDLC). By integrating these practices, you can ensure that strong security is part of the DNA of your software development, from design to deployment.

An important tool in software supply chain security is the software bill of materials (SBOM). An SBOM is a detailed, machine-readable list of all components and dependencies used in a piece of software. This transparency is crucial for effectively tracking components and managing vulnerabilities. Automated tools can work with an SBOM to validate lists against known security issues, such as a Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) database.

Container scanning is another essential tool, enabling the detection and remediation of vulnerabilities within container images before deployment. This ensures that only secure, compliant containers are used in production.

Finally, vulnerability management tools and regular vulnerability scanning play a pivotal role in software supply chain security. These tools continuously monitor for vulnerabilities, providing alerts and facilitating quick remediation to prevent potential security breaches.

Protect your software supply chain with CrowdStrike

Throughout this post, we've looked at what makes up your software supply chain. By highlighting the common threats associated, we’ve emphasized the importance of taking proactive measures toward software supply chain security.

CrowdStrike Falcon® Cloud Security is an all-in-one cloud-native application protection platform (CNAPP) that bundles in tools to help you ensure the security of your software supply chain. Its capabilities include IaC scanning, container image scanning, and runtime image scanning. The platform is designed to keep your applications — and every component that composes them — protected from the ever-growing number of cyber threats you face each day.

For a more in-depth analysis of your cloud security posture, schedule a free Cloud Security Health Check. Learn more about Falcon Cloud Security by contacting our team of security experts today.