MSPs
UNTANGLING THE RISK WEB
Tim Grieveson, Chief Security Officer at ThingsRecon, argues that the modern supply chain is no longer a linear sequence of trusted vendors - it’s a sprawling, interconnected ecosystem riddled with hidden dependencies and escalating cyber risk. From SaaS platforms and cloud infrastructure to open-source code and logistics networks, each node introduces potential vulnerabilities. As threat actors sharpen their focus on these weak links, Grieveson highlights the strategic importance of Managed Service Providers (MSPs) in helping organisations regain visibility, enforce controls, and build resilience across this fragmented landscape.
I
t may sound surprising, but no organisation truly owns its supply chain anymore. What was once a neat list of vendors now looks
more like a tangled web of SaaS providers, cloud platforms, open-source dependencies, logistics partners, and fourth-party suppliers you’ve never even heard of. Each of those links is both an enabler of your business and a potential exposure point. Te problem is, while the chain has grown more complex, the threats targeting it have grown sharper. Consider the now-infamous SolarWinds
attack, which brought thousands of businesses and agencies to their knees, including the US government. Or the MOVEit incident, in which a zero-day vulnerability in a file transfer programme leſt businesses like British Airways and the BBC exposed to ransomware. Te
38 | November/December 2025
patterns here are the same: a single compromise or vulnerability cascades across hundreds or thousands of downstream organisations that had no knowledge of the risk until it was too late. It was a wake-up call for boards and executives who were met with an uncomfortable reality – traditional procurement checks and annual audits no longer measure up against the dynamic, real-time attack surface in which they find themselves. Tis is where Managed Service Providers
(MSPs) are having to step up. At their best, they act as an extension of the enterprise’s security function, offering around-the-clock monitoring, standardised practices across fragmented ecosystems, and the ability to translate regulatory obligations into operational discipline. For mid-sized companies without the resources to
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