Executive Summary

A new report from supply chain insights firm Everstream Analytics, titled the '2026 Annual Supply Chain Risk Report,' paints a stark picture of the escalating cyber threats to global trade. The report reveals a massive 722% increase in cyberattacks targeting the automotive manufacturing industry in 2025 compared to 2024. The broader logistics sector also saw a significant 61% rise in incidents. This dramatic surge in cyberattacks is identified as one of the top four risks poised to disrupt global supply chains in the coming year, shifting the paradigm from a simple cost-of-doing-business issue to a critical security and national resilience challenge.

Threat Overview

The report's findings highlight a clear and deliberate targeting of critical industries by malicious actors.

• Automotive Sector: The number of documented cyber incidents targeting automotive manufacturing surged from just 37 in 2024 to 304 in 2025. Modern vehicles and manufacturing plants are heavily reliant on interconnected software, IoT devices, and OT systems, creating a vast attack surface.

• Logistics Sector: This industry experienced a 61% increase in attacks. The total number of cyber incidents documented by Everstream across all industries in 2025 was 2,526, nearly double the 1,295 from 2024. Attacks on logistics have grown exponentially from only 20 reported incidents in 2021.

This trend indicates that threat actors, including nation-states, are increasingly targeting supply chains to cause maximum disruption, steal intellectual property, or hold critical industries hostage.

Broader Risk Context

The report places the rise of cyberattacks within a complex global risk landscape. It identifies three other key factors that will disrupt trade and logistics:

1. Hybrid Warfare: The increasing use of non-military tactics by nations like Russia to achieve strategic goals, with cyberattacks being a primary tool.
2. Infrastructure Failures: The risk posed by aging and poorly maintained physical transport infrastructure (ports, railways, bridges).
3. Weaponization of Trade: The strategic use of tariffs, sanctions, and regulations as geopolitical weapons.

These factors are interconnected. A cyberattack on a major port (logistics) could be an act of hybrid warfare, exacerbated by aging OT systems at the port, creating a cascading failure across the automotive supply chain.

Impact Assessment

• Economic Disruption: Successful attacks can halt production lines, delay shipments, and cause massive financial losses for affected companies and downstream customers.
• National Security Risks: The targeting of critical sectors like automotive and logistics poses a threat to national economic security and resilience.
• Intellectual Property Theft: Attacks on manufacturing can lead to the theft of valuable trade secrets, blueprints, and proprietary process information.
• Safety Risks: A cyberattack on an automotive manufacturer could potentially compromise the safety of vehicles, while an attack on logistics could disrupt the supply of essential goods like food and medicine.

Mitigation Recommendations

• Supply Chain Visibility: Organizations must gain deeper visibility into the cybersecurity posture of their critical suppliers. This includes contractual requirements for security standards and rights to audit.
• Resilience Planning: Develop and test incident response plans that specifically account for supply chain disruptions. This includes identifying alternate suppliers and logistics providers.
• OT/ICS Security: Manufacturers must invest in securing their operational technology (OT) environments, including network segmentation, OT-specific monitoring, and vulnerability management for industrial control systems.
• Threat Intelligence Sharing: Participate in industry-specific Information Sharing and Analysis Centers (ISACs), such as the Automotive ISAC (Auto-ISAC), to share and receive timely threat intelligence.