White House Pledges $10 Million for Open Source Initiative

Much of the critical infrastructure that supports industries such as healthcare, transportation, and energy production rely on open source software. Now the federal government is making an $11 million investment to understand how this software is used and can be better secured through the Open-Source Software Prevalence Initiative (OSSPI), the White House and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced last week.

National Cyber Director Harry Coker announced the initiative at the DEF CON conference in Las Vegas. Funding for the project, which seeks to learn how open source software is used in critical infrastructure and with the ultimate goal of strengthening national cybersecurity, comes from the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

"We know that open source underlies our digital infrastructure, and it's vital that as a government, we contribute back to the community as part of broader infrastructure efforts," Coker told conference attendees.

The government cannot do the work alone, he added, so it is imperative that the cybersecurity community get involved, he added. 

"I know that the same value set that drives responsible vulnerability disclosure will lead you to continue to step up for the protection of the Internet. I know the Internet is a safer place today because of all of your efforts," Coker said. 

Last week the White House also released the findings of its recent request for information in its Open-Source Software Security Initiative (OS3I). That report highlights 12 recommendations from the cybersecurity community, including directives to advance research and development, secure package repositories, and strengthen ties between the government and open source communities.