Dominant companies a fat target for hackers and cyberwarfare

The recent ransomware attacks that temporarily crippled major U.S. suppliers of beef and fuel offer a frightening glimpse of the chaos cyberwarfare could sow, especially if the perpetrators were more focused on damaging critical infrastructure than reaping a financial bounty.

Security experts underscore the potential national implications of the attacks, saying they serve as a cautionary tale for how computerized mayhem can disrupt the economy, and even everyday life. Heightening those risks in recent years: industry consolidation that has concentrated market power in a handful of major companies and their computer networks — potential chokepoints that could be used to disable U.S. supplies of key products and services.   "Both the Colonial Pipeline and JBS events are really good reminders that there are significant concentration points in the supply chain for critical goods and services in the U.S. that need special attention," David White, president of cyber risk management company Axios, told CBS MoneyWatch.