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Open source security depends in part on the people who maintain projects—but security measures can fail if they add work maintainers cannot sustain. Linux Foundation Research’s Maintainer Perspectives on Open Source Software Security centers that tension: how can tools and practices improve security while empowering maintainers rather than creating additional burden?
What maintainers reported about security
The Linux Foundation’s January 2024 infographic reports survey findings about maintainers and core contributors. These are historical responses, not a measurement of how secure all open source software is today.
- 72% felt open source software would be secure by the end of 2023.
- 39% manually reviewed source code.
- 56% said their projects supported reproducible builds.
- 87% said their projects provided basic documentation.
- 69% of contributors wanted defined best practices for secure software development.
- 49% of contributors wanted employers to provide incentives for open source contributions.
- 30% of maintainers were responsible for implementing open source security policy, while 27% were responsible for defining it.
The 72% figure is an expression of confidence about a stated point in time; it does not establish that projects were independently assessed or that the confidence was borne out. The reported practices and requests also point to gaps: code review and reproducible builds were not universal, and many contributors wanted clearer guidance or workplace support. See the Linux Foundation Research infographic.
Which security tools did respondents identify?
Software composition analysis (SCA) and static application security testing (SAST) were the leading approaches respondents reported using to evaluate the security of open source packages in use. The infographic also names making security tools more intelligent as the leading approach respondents identified for improving security across the open source supply chain.
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These are survey responses, not a comparative test or a recommendation that every project adopt the same tools. SCA can help identify known issues in dependencies; SAST can flag potential problems in source code. Their practical value depends on coverage, integration with the project’s workflow, the usefulness of findings, and whether someone has time to triage and fix them. A flood of low-priority alerts can shift effort rather than reduce it.
How can security improvements avoid adding unsustainable work?
The report’s central question is how to build tools and practices that increase security while empowering maintainers instead of adding burden. That makes workflow and support part of security planning, not an afterthought.
Choose controls that fit the project
Start with the risks and routines the project already has. Consider whether a proposed check can run automatically, whether its results are actionable, and who will respond to them. Integrate checks into existing review or release processes where possible instead of creating a separate queue that maintainers must remember to visit.
Make expectations and decisions easy to find
Basic documentation was reported by 87% of projects, but documentation alone does not show whether security guidance is complete or easy to use. A project can make its process clearer by documenting how to report a vulnerability, how security fixes are handled, which checks run, and who is responsible for follow-up. Defined best practices were wanted by 69% of contributors, suggesting demand for practical, shared guidance rather than relying on each maintainer to invent a process.
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Share responsibility and recognize the work
When maintainers are expected to define or implement security policy, projects and employers can help by providing time, training, review, or funded support. Nearly half of contributors—49% in the infographic—wanted employer incentives for open source contributions. Security work is more sustainable when it is recognized as real work rather than an invisible addition to a maintainer’s existing duties.
What the findings can—and cannot—tell you
The focal report combines subject-matter expert interviews with data from a 2022 study focused on maintainers and core contributors. The overview and infographic do not provide enough detail to treat the reported percentages as representative of every ecosystem, geography, or project type. The separate Linux Foundation report Addressing Cybersecurity Challenges in Open Source Software says its April 2022 survey included 539 maintainers and core contributors and found issues such as scarce organizational security protocols and ineffective dependency management. That sample count belongs to that separate study, not automatically to every result in Maintainer Perspectives.
The reports are useful for understanding what surveyed maintainers and contributors said, and for identifying questions projects should ask about tooling, guidance, and support. They do not prove that a particular tool will improve security or reduce workload in every project. Read the report overview and view the official report record. For the separate survey context, see Addressing Cybersecurity Challenges in Open Source Software.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Practical options for projects seeking support
The findings make three categories relevant: SCA/SAST tools, secure-development training, and funding or organizational support for maintenance. They do not rank vendors or identify a particular provider as best. Before adopting a service or program, assess whether it covers the project’s needs, fits existing workflows, produces manageable results, and includes support for the people who must act on findings.
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