As part of Kaspersky’s annual “Security Bulletin”, the company’s experts analyzed major supply chain attacks and IT outages experienced last year.

In 2024, supply chain attacks and IT outages emerge as prominent cybersecurity concerns, demonstrating that almost no infrastructure is completely immune from risk. A faulty CrowdStrike update affected millions of systems; Sophisticated incidents such as the XZ backdoor and the Polyfill.io supply chain attack have highlighted the risks inherent in widely used tools. These and other notable cases highlight the need for rigorous security measures, robust patch and update management, and proactive defenses to protect global supply chains and infrastructure.

While evaluating the events of 2024 within the scope of “Story of the Year”, Kaspersky Security Bulletin discusses possible future scenarios and the potential consequences of these scenarios as follows:

But what if a major AI provider experiences an outage or data breach? Businesses are increasingly relying on models from providers such as OpenAI, Meta, Anthropic. However, despite the excellent user experience these integrations offer, they also come with significant cyber risks. Dependence on a single AI provider or a limited number of service providers creates concentrated points of failure. If a large artificial intelligence company experiences a critical outage, it can significantly affect tens or even thousands of services that depend on them.

Additionally, an incident at a major AI provider could lead to one of the most serious data leaks since these systems store large amounts of sensitive information.

But what if on-device AI tools are exploited? As AI becomes more integrated into everyday devices, the risk of it becoming an attack vector increases significantly. For example, Kaspersky’s Operation Triangulation campaign, revealed last year, showed how attackers can compromise device integrity by exploiting system software and hardware using zero-day vulnerabilities and installing advanced spyware. Potential software or hardware vulnerabilities in the neural processing units that run AI, including certain platforms such as Apple Intelligence, could, if discovered, significantly increase the scope and impact of such attacks. Exploiting such vulnerabilities can significantly amplify the scale and impact of attacks using AI capabilities.

Kaspersky’s Operation Triangulation investigation also uncovered a first-of-its-kind case reported by the company: the misuse of on-device machine learning tools for data extraction. This suggests that features designed to improve user experience are already being weaponized by advanced threat actors.

But what if threat actors disrupt satellite connectivity? Although the space industry has been facing various cyber attacks for some time, the new target of threat actors may be satellite internet providers as an important element of the global connectivity chain. Satellite internet can provide temporary communication links when other systems are down; Airlines, cruise lines and other platforms can rely on this service to offer connectivity to passengers. It can also be used to enable secure communication services.

This creates cyber risks: a targeted cyber attack or a faulty update against a leading or dominant satellite provider can cause internet outages and possible communication breakdowns and seriously impact individuals and organizations.

But what if major physical threats to the internet materialize? Continuing on the topic of connectivity, the internet is also vulnerable to physical threats. 95% of global data via undersea cables while being transmittedwhich are physical locations where different networks exchange data traffic approximately There are 1,500 Internet Exchange Points (IXPs). Many of these points are located in data centers.

An outage to just a few critical components of this chain – such as trunk cables or IXPs – could overload the remaining infrastructure and potentially lead to widespread outages, significantly impacting global connectivity.

But what if serious vulnerabilities are exploited in the Windows and Linux kernels? These operating systems run many critical assets around the world – servers, production equipment, logistics systems, IoT devices, and others. A remotely exploitable core vulnerability in these systems could expose countless devices and networks around the world to potential attacks, creating a high-risk situation where global supply chains could suffer major disruptions.

“Supply chain risks may seem daunting, but awareness is the first step to prevention,” said Igor Kuznetsov, Director of Kaspersky Global Research and Analysis Team (GReAT). We can reduce single points of failure by rigorously testing updates, using AI-powered anomaly detection, and diversifying providers. We can eliminate weak elements and build resilience. It is also vital to create a culture of responsibility among staff, because human attention is the cornerstone of security. “Together, these measures can ensure a safer future by protecting supply chains.”

With the advancement of technology, cyber crimes have become increasingly common. It is stated that a 19-year-old young hacker hacked telecom networks and caused damage of 4 million dollars.

19-year-old young hacker named Remington Ogletree, hacker He is accused of being affiliated with the Scattered Spider group, exploiting security vulnerabilities, carrying out extensive phishing activities and gaining unauthorized access. According to court records shared by Bloomberg, Ogletree breached the security of two telecom companies, sent phishing links to millions of users and tried to steal large amounts of cryptocurrency from users.

The mentioned hacking incidents took place in October 2023. However, authorities have just announced the developments to raise awareness about potential fraud and cybercrime activities. It is stated that Remington Ogletree sent a total of 8.5 million text messages to users.

The mentioned crimes were not limited to telecom companies. Ogletree’s actions extend to US financial institutions. Because the young hacker managed to deceive 12 employees, obtain sensitive information and access accounts. This is not the first time such cyber crimes have made headlines. Other incidents caused by hackers have also been brought up before.

While Ogletree’s case continues, the events revealed the security vulnerabilities of the telecom industry and what could happen if the necessary precautions are not taken. The names of the hacked telecom companies were not disclosed.