Greg Kroah-Hartman explains the Cyber Resilience Act for open source developers

The European Union's Cyber Resilience Act (CRA), a landmark piece of legislation, is generating significant interest and debate amongst the technology community. The CRA seeks to establish a harmonized framework for cybersecurity across the EU, mandating that digital products sold within the bloc are secure by design. This move reflects the EU's ambition to bolster its digital sovereignty and protect its citizens and businesses from cyber threats. The proposed legislation places specific obligations on manufacturers and developers, including requirements for vulnerability reporting, security updates, and lifecycle support. These new rules would apply to a vast array of digital products, from hardware and software to services. Open-source developers, often working on a voluntary basis, are now carefully evaluating the potential compliance burdens that these new requirements could introduce for their projects. The CRA's impact will be widespread, affecting software developers, hardware manufacturers, and anyone involved in the digital product supply chain operating within the European market. Its implementation could increase development costs and introduce additional administrative overhead for businesses of all sizes. Furthermore, it is seen by some as a crucial step in achieving greater digital autonomy and reducing reliance on non-EU technology vendors, bolstering the overall security of European digital infrastructure. As the CRA progresses through the legislative process, ongoing discussions will likely focus on clarifying the application of these rules to open-source software and ensuring the legislation supports innovation without inadvertently stifling it. Stakeholders are actively seeking clarity on the implications of these provisions to ensure a balanced approach is found.