AI opens supply chains to hackers, and fights them

Recent incidents at Uber Freight, Ceva Logistics, and Coca-Cola's Fairlife dairy brand illustrate a pattern supply chain executives are confronting. Warehouses and plants are adopting AI technologies like trackers on trucks, forklifts, cameras, temperature sensors, laptops, and GPS systems. These tools help operators stay competitive, but they also become vectors of entry for hackers, as Source Logistics CTO Bart Bullard described.

The stakes are high because a breach can force companies to shut down systems until they identify the source. That process can take an average of 247 days, according to an IBM report this year. When Jaguar Land Rover was hit by a cyberattack last fall, production halted for six weeks, suppliers lost work, and some small companies went out of business, according to Liz James of NCC Group. Attacks also travel through software supply chains; last month CloudSEK and Hudson Rock disclosed that a poisoned open-source tool, LiteLLM, exposed data across more than 2,500 organizations.

In response, companies are using AI to scan software for hidden vulnerabilities and deploy patches quickly, while also training employees to spot phishing scams and use password managers. As deepfake videos and voice calls become more convincing, the usual tells of a phishing scam disappear. Bob Krohn of ISG noted that diversified supplier networks mean each new partner brings potential cyber risk, and that not all attacks can be prevented. The outcome likely hinges on whether AI-enabled defenses can keep pace with attackers who use AI to mine code for vulnerabilities faster than humans can.