#supply-chain-compromise

#supply-chain-compromise

In 2025, trust became the most exploited surface in modern computing. For decades, cyber security has centered on vulnerabilities, software bugs, misconfigured systems and weak network protections. Recent incidents in cyber security marked a clear turning point, as attackers no longer needed to rely solely on traditional techniques. This shift wasn't subtle. Instead, it emerged across nearly every major incident: supply chain breaches leveraging trusted platforms, credential abuse across federated identity systems,

The infection chains, per Google, involve a combination of phishing campaigns designed to steal credentials or distribute malware and leveraging trusted relationships with third-party suppliers and partners. The second approach signals a particularly clever strategy when striking defense contractors. While these organizations tend to have robust defenses, that may not be the case with third-party partners - a weak link in the supply chain that UNC1549 weaponizes to its advantage by first gaining access to a connected entity in order to infiltrate its main targets.