The Criticality of Context for Addressing Software Supply Chain Risk

Understanding the context of detected risks is crucial for addressing software supply chain threats efficiently. Not all risks are equal, so it's essential to consider the context around each threat to prioritize remediation efforts effectively. Threat context determines whether a threat is relevant and its criticality for remediation. Factors such as system, purpose, software involved, and response team ability affect risk criticality. To assess context accurately, organizations need full visibility into their supply chain and existing risks, which can be achieved through tools like software bills of materials (SBOMs) and asset inventory indexing. Threat contexts should form the basis for managing and responding to risks, with a framework for classifying and prioritizing threats based on risk severity and business importance. Regular monitoring and review of risks are necessary to fine-tune the context baseline and management approach. Understanding threat contexts enables rapid resolution by ensuring the most relevant risks rise to the top automatically and defining ownership or responsibility. Adopting a pipelineless security model, identifying assets, proactively assessing supply chain risks, and using framework-driven methods are best practices for utilizing context in risk management.