Advanced Persistent Threats Based on Supply Chain Vulnerabilities: Challenges, Solutions, and Future Directions

Due to the ever increasing interdependency across a variety of diverse software and hardware components in information and communications technology (ICT) provisioning, supply chain vulnerabilities (SCVs) targeting such dependencies have evolved as a primary choice for malicious actors to stealthy and complex cyber-attacks. The current modus operandi in the cyber threat spectrum is solely correlated with advanced persistent threats (APTs) that have shown to be prevalent across diversified attacks underpinning cyberwarfare and cybercrime. Hence, defense against such threats is undoubtedly considered as a high priority on a global scale. Nonetheless, the reliance on third-party supply chain software and device across diverse ICT ecosystems, combined with the current defense mechanisms' inability to identify specific compromised entry points, results in an increased risk of APTs. This survey explores the state-of-the-art to stratify and showcase the properties of supply chain-based APTs, elaborate on reported risks from such APTs, and expand on existing defense methods. This study connects academic research with industry practices to highlight a new and growing problem. It examines supply chain compromises, offers unique insight into how these exploitations occur, and equips cybersecurity practitioners with the knowledge required to design next-generation APT defense mechanisms.