Patch source validationSolved

Hi @bram, 

Good question. Patch source validation is essentially making sure any software patch or update comes from a trusted and verifiable source, whether that’s an OS vendor, a signed app repository, or a known third-party vendor. 

The relevance to supply chain security is that attackers increasingly target the update paths themselves. If a patch comes from an untrusted or compromised source, it can serve as a delivery mechanism for malicious code. Validating patch sources helps ensure the software hasn’t been tampered with before it reaches your systems. 

Adding to what @akemi said, we follow a few steps to keep things clean on our end:

• All updates go through official vendor channels only.
• For third-party apps, we either verify the publisher’s digital signature or compare the file’s checksum to a trusted source to ensure it hasn’t been altered.
• Nothing gets pushed to production until it’s passed internal testing.

It sounds like extra work, but it’s worth it. Especially with how sophisticated some supply chain attacks are getting. If your update source isn’t locked down, you’re taking a risk every time you install something.

Appreciate the insights, both of you.

Jumping in, we’ve been using Hexnode’s patches and updates feature to manage macos updates lately. 

It’s been helpful for tracking available updates and scheduling them remotely, but just to confirm, are these updates always pulled directly from Apple? We’ve been cautious about unintentionally installing anything from an untrusted source. 

Thanks for bringing that up, @ryker. 

Yes, macOS updates triggered through Hexnode are downloaded directly from Apple’s servers. Hexnode just initiates the update, it doesn’t host or modify the files in any way. 

So, in this case, patch source validation is inherently taken care of. 

Cheers, 
Eden Pierce 
Hexnode UEM