What is Software of Unknow Provenance (SOUP)?

Software of Unknown Provenance (SOUP): software components within a system or application whose origin, development process, or reliability can’t be adequately verified or documented. SOUP components are often seen as risky in safety-critical or regulated settings due to their lack of traceability. Manufacturers sometimes use SOUP because they can’t develop all software components from scratch, integrating pre-existing software instead.