67 percent of UK IT decision makers are concerned about supply chain issues

A new survey of UK IT decision makers from cybersecurity company WithSecure looks at global supply chain issues, with 67 percent of respondents believing that these issues will either remain the same (28 percent) or get worse (39 percent) within the next year.

As issues around inflation and supply shortages remain high in the news agenda, 43 percent believe they are very knowledgeable in their understanding of supply chain issues. However, few are confident of quick fixes to these global issues, and 60 percent of respondents believe that they will last for two years or more.

The repercussions of current global unrest have dented confidence in cybersecurity though. When asked about the impact that the geo-political events of 2022 have had, more than a third of respondents (34 percent) believe that these have resulted in a reduction in security of more than 50 percent.

There are particular concerns around the UK's cyber resilience, with 41 percent of respondents believing that the UK is more vulnerable to attacks than other countries, with 17 percent of these believing it to be 'much' more vulnerable. Specifically looking at the supply chain, 68 percent of the respondents believe that the demand for cybersecurity is now at an all-time high. Two-thirds of respondents think that third-party suppliers are important in securing the supply chain.

Paul Brucciani, cyber security advisor at WithSecure says:

The past two years have seen a perfect storm of factors and geo-political events which have reverberated around the world, contributing to shortages and exposing new risks. Nearly every sector has been impacted and, as we're all part of a connected ecosystem of suppliers, it's more important than ever to consider the means through which security can protect these vital supply chains.

Some organizations will have hundreds or even thousands of suppliers, so they need to understand not only their own risk profile, but also how any weak points in the chain could impact their risk exposure and how these risks can spread. Taking a proactive and preventative approach and working with trusted partners to identify any risks areas is key to improving resiliency.

The study also shows that 58 percent of respondents think that Wi-Fi or internet access is now a necessity for life. Other essentials include medicine (52 percent) electricity (60 percent) and gasoline (43 percent).

There's a webinar discussing defending the supply chain from cyber issues on the WithSecure site.

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