# What is a supply chain attack?

A supply chain attack reaches you through someone you trust: a software vendor whose update is tampered with, an IT service provider whose remote-management tool is abused, a supplier with VPN access to your network, or a hacked partner whose e-mail is used to send you malicious invoices. It works because the access or the software is legitimate, so it passes the checks you apply to strangers. Defences are knowing which suppliers have access to what, giving each the least access it needs and its own accounts with multi-factor authentication (MFA), disabling access when it is not in use, and asking about their security in contracts. NIS2 lists supply chain security among the cybersecurity risk-management measures in Article 21. NetSenX cannot see a tampered update being built; it sees what the supplier's access or software then does on your network, such as beaconing or new sessions.

FAQ: [Attack techniques explained](https://netsenx.com/en/faq/attacks) · https://netsenx.com/en/faq/what-is-a-supply-chain-attack

## Read next

- https://netsenx.com/en/detect-lateral-movement-c2-beaconing
- https://netsenx.com/en/is-someone-inside-your-network

## Related questions

- [What is a zero-day, and can anything detect it?](https://netsenx.com/en/faq/what-is-a-zero-day-and-can-it-be-detected)
- [What is the difference between brute force and password spraying?](https://netsenx.com/en/faq/difference-between-brute-force-and-password-spraying)
- [What is credential stuffing?](https://netsenx.com/en/faq/what-is-credential-stuffing)
- [What is Kerberoasting?](https://netsenx.com/en/faq/what-is-kerberoasting)
- [What is pass-the-hash?](https://netsenx.com/en/faq/what-is-pass-the-hash)