Supply Chain Security

Supply chain security protects your applications from vulnerabilities and malicious code introduced through dependencies, container images, and third-party components. In Kubernetes, this means securing everything from base images to application dependencies.

What is Supply Chain Security?

Your software supply chain includes:

Container images - Base images and application images
Dependencies - Libraries and packages your application uses
Build tools - CI/CD pipelines and build systems
Registries - Image repositories and package registries

flowchart TD A[Source Code] --> B[Build Process] B --> C[Container Image] C --> D[Image Registry] D --> E[Kubernetes Cluster] B --> F[Scan for Vulnerabilities] C --> G[Sign Image] D --> H[Verify Signature] E --> I[Runtime Protection] style F fill:#fff4e1 style G fill:#fff4e1 style H fill:#fff4e1 style I fill:#e8f5e9

Why Supply Chain Security Matters

Modern applications rely heavily on third-party components:

90% of code in typical applications comes from dependencies
Vulnerabilities in dependencies can compromise your entire application
Malicious code in container images can run with your application’s privileges
Compliance requirements often mandate supply chain security

Supply Chain Threats

Vulnerabilities

Known security flaws in dependencies:

CVEs (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures)
Outdated packages with known issues
Unpatched base images

Malicious Code

Intentionally harmful code:

Backdoors in dependencies
Compromised build pipelines
Tampered container images

Weak Signatures

Lack of cryptographic verification:

Unsigned images
Weak signing keys
No signature verification