A research recently conducted by Gartner’s Maverick research, throws lights on the major security concerns that may affect IT supply chain integrity. Their research conducted among 2000 global IT companies reveals that IT supply chain integrity will be one of the top three security issues by 2017.
The process of managing an organization’s internal capabilities, its partners and suppliers for ensuring optimum result is called as IT supply chain integrity. Security issues in IT supply chain may be felt negligible in the short term process. But in the long run, it may start affecting core areas like OS, and IT system infrastructure software, which will drastically affect the fundamental processes. Such threats in information protection strategies often force enterprises to look for cloud computing and consumerization.
Gartner’s research report also claims that IT supply chain integrity issues are not restricted to hardware only, but it shows moving trend to software and as well as information. Growing complexity in IT supply chain occurs due to the assembling of IT systems through large number of geographically dispersed providers. In fact, such security issues can cause adverse effects in global IT business.
Gartner’s analysis points out that, hardware systems manufactured today include software based elements also. This is actually an approach to move intelligence out of hardware and to integrate it more in software. Integration of such software supply chains is not easy due to increased use of offshore development, cloning software issues, and need for maintaining software through trusted mechanisms.
Information is also cited as a problem in IT supply chain security, since it is made available from various sources. Some of the possible sources include partners, suppliers and cloud-based services. Information collected from these sources is important as they are often used in connected applications, in developing market information system, etc. As critical decisions are based on collected information, discrepancy in the same will result in chaotic situations. So in effect, the research asserts that hardware, software and information will act as the main sources posing threats to IT supply chain integrity by 2017.
