As manufacturers embrace automation and digital twins to model, monitor, and optimize physical processes, they become more reliant on a complex web of third-party simulation software, cloud infrastructure, and external data inputs. Vulnerabilities in these supply chain components can compromise the integrity of digital twin environments, leading to inaccurate data, flawed decision-making, or even manipulated simulations. So what are the risks exactly and what practical steps can manufacturers take?

Outsourced Risk: How Third-Party Code is Compromising Industrial IoT

Modern IIoT (Industrial Internet of Things) devices are built on complex software stacks, often containing open-source components, third-party libraries, and outsourced firmware—all of which can introduce hidden vulnerabilities into manufacturing environments. Attackers are exploiting outdated libraries, compromised repositories, and insecure development practices to gain access to industrial networks, highlighting the growing need for visibility into software components through tools like SBOMs (Software Bill of Materials).

The manufacturing industry is under pressure from two converging forces: the rapid rollout of IIoT / OT devices (sensors, robotics, predictive maintenance) and increasingly distributed vendor ecosystems. This means new shadow assets and supply chain weak links appear constantly.  

Where Manufacturing’s Shadow Risks Hide

These are typical hidden risks and evolving threats in manufacturing:

• Unmanaged IIoT endpoints — Sensors, quality control cameras, embedded firmware in robotics often installed without rigorous change control. They may not be listed in your asset inventory.

• Digital manufacturing trojans — As additive manufacturing (3D printing) and custom fabrication grow, there’s increasing evidence of hardware/software trojans introduced upstream. These may emerge long after manufacture.

• Vendor / contractor shadow exposure — Firms subcontracting firmware or software often don’t have visibility into their supplier’s suppliers. A vulnerability upstream (e.g. in a firmware module) can impact your machines without your team ever knowing.

• Firmware / open-source component drift — Dependencies age. Libraries go unsupported. Yet production still moves.

What Manufacturing Security Leaders Can Do

Here’s a practical way of facing these threats:

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At the end of the day, supply chain risk in manufacturing isn’t an abstract IT problem, it’s an operational reality. Every hidden device, every forgotten API, every unpatched firmware module is a potential production stoppage, compliance breach, or multimillion-dollar recall waiting to happen. By treating external exposure and shadow assets as part of your core security strategy, security leaders can move from reacting to crises to actively preventing them.

Here’s what that shift delivers in practice:  

1. Downtime prevention: Hidden assets often lead to unexpected disruptions. By knowing what’s connected and exposed, you reduce unplanned production halts.

2. Regulatory & safety compliance: Industries with safety standards (automotive, pharma, chemicals) must treat firmware and vendor exposure as part of regulatory compliance. Hidden risk isn’t just about data—it’s about physical harm.

3. Cost avoidance: Shadow firmware vulnerabilities or unmanaged IIoT endpoints often lead to post-incident remediation, recalls, or compliance fines. Early detection is always cheaper.