Software Supply Chain Vulnerability Assessment via Directed Graph Analysis
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current cybersecurity approaches focus primarily on software applications, neglecting the cybersecurity risks associated with the software development supply chain, which introduces vulnerabilities at various stages, leading to a complex chain of risks that are not comprehensively assessed.
Innovation Solution
A system and method for comprehensive cybersecurity threat assessment that analyzes the code and operation of software applications, identifies components, determines their sources, and constructs a cyber-physical graph to evaluate vulnerabilities across the software supply chain, using a computing device with a software analyzer, reconnaissance engine, and scoring engine to generate a cybersecurity score.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If cybersecurity analysis focuses only on the software application itself, then the analysis process is simple and fast, but the assessment is incomplete and misses supply chain vulnerabilities
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the software supply chain into distinct components (software application, dependencies, development tools, data sources) and analyzes each segment separately. The system identifies and traces specific software components and their sources, breaking down the complex supply chain into manageable parts that can be individually assessed for vulnerabilities while maintaining the overall context of the supply chain relationships.
2Reliability
If the system traces and analyzes all components from all stages of the software supply chain, then comprehensive vulnerability assessment is achieved, but the computational complexity and resource requirements increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a multi-functional system that performs various analysis tasks through a unified framework. The same system infrastructure handles component identification, source tracing, vulnerability detection, and relationship mapping across different software supply chain stages. This universal approach reduces redundant complexity by using common data structures and processing mechanisms for diverse analysis functions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a nested analysis structure where the system traces software components through multiple levels of the supply chain hierarchy. It nests the analysis of dependencies within the analysis of the main application, and further nests the analysis of development tools within the dependency analysis. This nested approach organizes the complex analysis in a hierarchical manner that manages computational complexity while maintaining comprehensive coverage.
3Loss of information
If the system constructs a directed graph of all relationships between components and sources, then complete vulnerability path analysis is enabled, but the data processing and storage requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the essential relationship information needed for vulnerability assessment from the software supply chain. Rather than storing all possible data about components and their relationships, the system selectively extracts and stores the specific relationships that contribute to vulnerability paths. This extraction approach reduces data volume while preserving the critical information needed for comprehensive threat assessment.
Data Source
AI summary
A system and method for comprehensive cybersecurity threat assessment of software applications based on the totality of vulnerabilities from all levels of the software supply chain. The system and method comprising analyzing the code and/or operation of a software application to determine components comprising the software, identifying the source of such components, determining vulnerabilities associated with those components, compiling a list of such components, creating a directed graph of relationships between the components and their sources, and evaluating the overall threat associated with the software application based its software supply chain vulnerabilities.