Securing the future of Open-Source Software through regulatory compliance
The word open-source generally conjures up sentiments of insecurity and vulnerability when applied to a technology or software platform. There are justifiable reasons why open-source software may appear insecure to commercial users. When something is open source, it implies the software’s source code is visible and editable, allowing programmers to modify its source. This conveys the impression that the software is continually changing, and that incompetent modification could completely ruin the tool.
In recent years some industry heavyweights have surprisingly been taking note of and acquiring some prominent open-source projects. In 2018 Microsoft acquired GitHub and shortly after, in 2019, IBM acquired Red Hat. Ushering the new era of open-source software maturity and corporate acceptance thereof.
The Role of Compliance
With the increased inclusion of open-source tools into corporate environments, organizations had to bring open-source software licensing in line with their corporate regulatory compliance. Open-source license compliance has therefore become part of corporate licensing strategies. The term “software license compliance” refers to the use of lawful software. This is a challenge for which both application developers and enterprise software users must bear responsibility. Otherwise, both would be open to litigation. Fortunately, some forethought and a few powerful technologies may assist both software firms and their consumers avoid taking a loss due to non-compliance. Many organizations have decentralized the management of their licensing compliance to third-party vendors who specialize in the management and tracking of these software licenses. The usage of open-source software is often free, but it comes with responsibilities. Each component comes under its license and utilization terms and conditions, and there are many licenses to keep track of. The benefit of implementing a third-party solution of this kind is that the weight and risk of ensuring licensing compliance is accurately taken care of in a professional manner on behalf of the organization. Consolidating all software licenses, proprietary and open-source under a single umbrella.
This means that organizations are more willing to allow developers, employees, and system architects to implement open-source solutions if they stay compliant. In the software industry, there is a close symbiotic relationship between the quality of open-source software and how widespread the software is being used. The greater the userbase of a particular set of open-source tools and code libraries are the more mature it becomes over time. This is due to more software engineers becoming engaged in the project, fixing bugs, and improving existing features. This achieved maturity results in increased popularity and by extension results in increased implementation of the software. Open-source license compliance is therefore not only compulsory for organizations, but it also aids in the longevity of such open-source software projects, in the long term. Mature open-source software poses lower risks to an organization. Allowing developers to safely build high-quality solutions with powerful applications.
Benefits of Open-Source Software
Using open-source software can help organizations to save money, increasing their overall return on investment. Saving them money on licensing and maintenance. The only costs they generally have to deal with are those for documentation, media, and support. For the most part, open-source software support can be found on online forums and open communities. Some packages do however require some sort of subscription fee for one-on-one application support. With, open-source software is typically a lot more scalable than its proprietary counterparts. Allowing organizations to customize the software to meet specific requirements when needed.
In Conclusion
Organizations that are planning to implement open-source software need to improve their processes surrounding the acquisition of open-source software. This is typically done by implementing updated policies and procedures that cater to open-source licensing compliance. In doing so, any future implementation of open-source applications and code libraries will be streamlined into their compliance framework without the risk of costly litigation.
Open-source software is typically built by professional for professionals to address some specialized software need which is not catered for by proprietary software. Although the track record of open-source software has come a long way, organizations still need to perform the necessary due diligence before implementation. Open-source license compliance is paving the way forward for organizations to implement and trust open-source solutions. Securing the future of open-source applications, driving the overall quality of these applications.
