Fact Sheet: Biden-Harris Administration Releases End of Year Report on Open-Source Software Security Initiative
Today, as part of President Biden’s National Cybersecurity Strategy (NCS), the Office of the National Cyber Director published the 2023 End of Year Report on the Open-Source Software Security Initiative (OS3I). The report details the critical work over the last year to continue the President’s commitment to secure the full benefits of a safe and secure digital ecosystem for all Americans.
The NCS commits that “in partnership with the private sector and the open-source software community, the Federal Government will also continue to invest in the development of secure software, including memory-safe languages and software development techniques, frameworks, and testing tools.” This commitment was further solidified in the NCS Implementation Plan which included a direction to “promote open-source software security and the adoption of memory-safe programming languages” among the over 65 high-impact Federal initiatives. The NCS Implementation Plan expands and matures the role of the OS3I, which convenes Federal departments and agencies and considers input from the open-source software community, civil society, and private sector stakeholders across the open-source software landscape to deliver policy solutions to secure and defend the ecosystem.
The 2023 End of Year Report details the significance of open-source software, its ecosystem, and inherent challenges. It also reflects the progress made by the OS3I on key 2023 deliverables. In 2023 the OS3I focused on four key areas:
1. Unifying the Federal Government’s voice on open-source software security;
2. Establishing a strategic approach for the Federal Government’s secure use of open-source software and efforts to secure the broader ecosystem;
3. Advancing President Biden’s Invest in America agenda by encouraging long-term, sustained security investment in the open-source software ecosystem; and
4. Engaging and building trust with the open-source software community.
As articulated in the NCS, the Biden-Harris Administration is committed to long-term planning and collaboration with the open-source software community to achieve a more defensible and resilient digital ecosystem. Coordinated by the Office of the National Cyber Director, the work of the OS3I in 2024 is already underway.
Read the full Open-Source Software Security Initiative End of Year Report here.
Read the full National Cybersecurity Strategy here.
Read the full National Cybersecurity Strategy Implementation Plan here.
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