Bridging the Gaps: How Enterprises Can Uncover Hidden Risk Connections in 2025

In 2025, enterprise risks are more complex — and interconnected — than ever before. 

Enterprise risk in 2025? It's a whole different animal than what we’ve dealt with in decades past. Companies today are juggling expanded digital operations and increasingly complex global supply chains — which means risks aren't static. They bounce around, connecting in ways that can catch even the most prepared organizations off guard. 

Businesses have gotten really good at building sophisticated risk frameworks, but they're still missing connections between different threats or chains of events that may result in multiple risks being realized. The kind that can turn what should be a minor hiccup into a company-wide nightmare. 

Take supply chain attacks, for example. One cybersecurity breach at a supplier doesn't just stay there — it ripples through procurement, hits manufacturing, messes with customer deliveries, and suddenly you're dealing with vulnerabilities that your standard risk assessment never saw coming. These hidden connections aren't always obvious, but when they hit, the damage can be brutal. We're talking operational shutdowns, reputation hits, and serious financial pain. 

So why are so many organizations still getting blindsided by these interconnected risks? It comes down to old-fashioned, compartmentalized thinking. Too many companies are still treating risks like isolated incidents instead of looking at the bigger picture of how everything connects. 

The Challenge: Why Hidden Risk Connections Are Missed 

Traditional risk assessments often fail to uncover interconnected threats due to three critical limitations: 

Siloed risk management approaches 

Many enterprises still operate with fragmented risk frameworks, where cybersecurity, operational, and supply chain risks are managed in isolation. This compartmentalization prevents teams from identifying cross-functional dependencies — like how a third-party vendor’s cyber vulnerability could simultaneously disrupt IT systems and manufacturing workflows. 

Tunnel vision on obvious, isolated risks 

Conventional methods prioritize high-probability, well-understood risks (e.g., phishing attacks) while overlooking subtler interdependencies. For example, a ransomware attack on a logistics provider might be treated as an IT incident, ignoring its potential to paralyze inventory management and delay customer deliveries. 

Falsely believing that impact ends with your organization

Most organizations only look at, consider, and measure impact within their own boundaries — focusing on direct harm to the organization itself, such as financial loss or reputational damage. This narrow perspective fails to account for the broader effects that incidents can have on individuals, communities, and other stakeholders beyond the organization.

The “Duty of Care” and DoCRA (Duty of Care Risk Analysis) methodology challenge this limited view by explicitly considering the potential harm and impact to individuals, communities, and other parties who may be affected by an organization’s actions or inactions. DoCRA encourages organizations to evaluate risks not just in terms of their own exposure, but also in terms of the consequences for employees, customers, partners, and the broader society — ensuring that safeguards are proportionate and that organizations fulfill their broader responsibilities.

The SolarWinds Supply Chain Cascade 

In 2020, hackers compromised SolarWinds’ software update system, injecting malware into a routine patch for its Orion IT management platform. Because SolarWinds was a trusted vendor to over 18,000 organizations — including government agencies and Fortune 500 companies — the breach created a domino effect: 

Primary risk: Compromised software integrity 

Hidden connections: 

• Exfiltration of sensitive data from downstream clients 

• Disruption of federal cybersecurity operations 

• Erosion of trust in critical infrastructure providers 

The attack remained undetected for months, illustrating how traditional assessments miss risks that span vendors, technologies, and business functions. 

 Because enterprises have become better at hardening their own environments, supply chain attacks have risen by 430%. 

Other Scenarios

Cyber-Physical Risks 

A 2023 attack on ASUS’ Live Utility — malware embedded in BIOS update tools — demonstrates how compromised firmware can simultaneously endanger device security, manufacturing quality control, and IoT-connected production lines. 

Third-Party Dependencies 

The 2013 Target data breach originated not through the retailer’s systems, but via an HVAC supplier’s compromised credentials. This exposed 40 million payment cards, highlighting how low-tier vendors can become critical risk vectors. 

Material & Labor Interdependencies 

In 2024, ongoing geopolitical tensions and trade disputes caused significant raw material shortages in sectors such as electronics and automotive, forcing many enterprises to rapidly onboard new suppliers. This rush to integrate alternative vendors — often without thorough cybersecurity vetting — contributed to a surge in third-party security breaches, with nearly half of 2024’s data breaches traced to vulnerabilities in vendor access. 

These examples underscore a fundamental truth: In 2025’s hyperconnected landscape, risks no longer exist in isolation. Enterprises that fail to map these hidden connections risk catastrophic blind spots. 

Surfacing the Invisible: Strategies for Uncovering Hidden Risks 

Engaging First-Line Risk Owners 

Cross-functional collaboration is critical for identifying interconnected risks, as siloed teams often miss dependencies between cybersecurity, supply chain, and operational threats. Enterprises that empower first-line risk owners — those closest to daily operations — are positioned to recover faster from disruptions. 

Tactics for success: 

• Conduct risk identification workshops with IT, procurement, and finance teams to map interdependencies (e.g., how a vendor’s cyber breach could impact manufacturing). 

• Link performance incentives to risk reporting accuracy, fostering ownership at the business-unit level. 

• Provide targeted training on emerging risks like AI-driven fraud, enabling frontline teams to flag anomalies in real time. 

Leveraging Technology Innovations 

AI-driven risk mapping tools analyze millions of data points — from supply chain logs to employee access patterns — to predict cascading risks. For example, natural language processing (NLP) scans unstructured data (emails, contracts) to identify unvetted third-party vendors, reducing breach risks by 34%. 

Visualization tools like network diagrams and bow tie analysis reveal hidden connections: 

Tool	Use Case	Supported Impact
Network diagrams	Show how ransomware in logistics affects inventory and delivery	Improve visibility and support faster response
Predictive analytics (including heatmaps)	Highlight geospatial risks in supplier networks	Can reduce supply chain disruptions by up to 35% when used as part of broader predictive analytics and AutoML

Adopting Risk Control Self-Assessments (RCSAs) 

RCSAs force teams to confront non-obvious linkages by systematically evaluating how controls in one area (e.g., IT access protocols) affect risks in another (e.g., financial reporting). 

Best practices for implementation: 

1. Use hybrid approaches: Combine department-specific questionnaires with cross-functional workshops to surface gaps. 

2. Score risks dynamically: Update inherent risk scores weekly using AI-powered threat feeds, not annual reviews. 

3. Integrate with ERM: Feed RCSA findings into enterprise risk dashboards to align mitigation with strategic goals. 

Manufacturers that integrate RCSAs with supplier cybersecurity audits — ensuring vendors meet baseline security standards — can significantly reduce downtime caused by third-party breaches. For example, industry case studies show that improved cybersecurity monitoring and regular audits in automotive manufacturing environments can help minimize downtime and reduce the risk of operational disruptions. 

The vCISO Advantage: Contextualizing and Connecting Risks 

Breaking Down Silos with Holistic Risk Management 

vCISO and fractional CISO services bridge departmental divides by providing an enterprise-wide view of risks. Unlike internal teams constrained by organizational hierarchies, vCISOs leverage cross-industry expertise to identify interdependencies between IT, compliance, supply chain, and operational risks. For example, they might uncover how a cloud migration in the finance department could expose IoT devices in manufacturing to new attack vectors. 

Benefits of External Expertise 

• Objective oversight: Unbiased risk prioritization, free from internal politics. 

• Cross-industry insights: Lessons from manufacturing, finance, or retail applied to your sector. 

• Scalability: Flexible support during mergers, cloud migrations, or regulatory changes. 

Actionable Steps for Enterprises in 2025 

Immediate Checklist to Bridge Risk Gaps 

☑️ Conduct cross-functional risk workshops with IT, legal, and operations. 

☑️ Map third-party vendors and enforce minimum cybersecurity standards. 

☑️ Pilot AI-driven risk mapping tools to visualize connections (e.g., ServiceNow IRM). 

Ongoing Recommendations 

• Quarterly risk interdependency reviews: Update assessments with input from all business units. 

• Invest in automation: Deploy tools for continuous monitoring of vendor networks and internal controls. 

• Culture shift: Reward employees for reporting near-misses and subtle risk linkages. 

Summing It Up 

Enterprises can no longer afford to treat risks as isolated incidents. Hidden connections between cyber threats, supply chain disruptions, and operational vulnerabilities amplify their potential impact, but also offer opportunities for proactive mitigation. By engaging frontline teams and partnering with vCISOs, organizations can transform risk management from a reactive cost center into security, trust, and advantage. 

The payoff is clear: Companies that actively bridge risk gaps report faster incident response, higher customer trust, and greater agility in navigating disruptions. Start today by auditing just one critical process — a cloud migration, vendor contract, or new product launch — through the lens of interconnected risks. Your future resilience depends on the connections you uncover now!