Other documents that you may find useful include: An official website of the United States government, Frequently Asked Questions regarding Open Source Software (OSS) and the Department of Defense (DoD). In addition, important open source software is typically supported by one or more commercial firms. However, sometimes OGOTS/GOSS software is later released as OSS. Currently there are no IO Certificates available for this Tracking Number. Look at the Numbers! Running shoes. Volume II of its third edition, section 6.C.3, describes in detail this prohibition on voluntary services. Certain FAR clause alternatives (such as FAR 52.227-17) require the contractor to assign the copyright to the government. (The MIT license is similar to public domain release, but with some legal protection from lawsuits.). FROM: Air Force Authorizing Official . 37 African nations, US kickoff AACS 2023 in Senegal. Distribution Mixing GPL and other software can be stored and transmitted together. Indeed, vulnerability databases such as CVE make it clear that merely hiding source code does not counter attacks: Hiding source code does inhibit the ability of third parties to respond to vulnerabilities (because changing software is more difficult without the source code), but this is obviously not a security advantage. The 88th Air Base Wing is the host organization for Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. Thus, to reduce the risk of executing malicious code, potential users should consider the reputation of the supplier and the experience of other users, prefer software with a large number of users, and ensure that they get the real software and not an imitator. If such software includes third-party components that were not produced in performace of that contract, the contractor is generally responsible for acquiring those components with acceptable licenses that premit the government to use that software. Many analyses focus on versions of the GNU General Public License (GPL), since this is the most common OSS license, but analyses for other licenses are also available. DoD Directive 5000.1 states that open systems shall be employed, where feasible, and the European Commission identifies open standards as a major policy thrust. Relevant government authorities make it clear that the Antideficiency Act (ADA) does not generally prohibit the use of OSS due to limitations on voluntary services. is a survey paper that provides quantitative data that, in many cases, using open source software / free software (abbreviated as OSS/FS, FLOSS, or FOSS) is a reasonable or even superior approach to using their proprietary competition according to various measures.. (its) goal is to show that you should consider using OSS/FS when acquiring software. Such source code may not be adequate to cost-effectively. In nearly all cases, pre-existing OSS are commercial products, and thus their use is governed by the rules for including any commercial products in the deliverable. In general, Security by Obscurity is widely denigrated. Common licenses for each type are: - Permissive: MIT, BSD-new, Apache 2.0 - Weakly protective: LGPL (version 2 or 3) - Strongly protective: GPL (version 2 or 3). It depends on the goals for the project, however, here are some guidelines: Public domain where required by law. The WHO was established on 7 April 1948. Releasing software as OSS does not mean that organizations will automatically arise to help develop/support it. Q: What are the risks of the government releasing software as OSS? OSS projects typically seek financial gain in the form of improvements. Even for many modifications (e.g., bug fixes) this causes no issues because in many cases the DoD has no interest in keeping those changes confidential. This memo is available at, The Open Technology Development Roadmap was released by the office of the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Advanced Systems and Concepts, on 7 Jun 2006. See. Special Series. If some portion of the software is protected by copyright, then the combined software work can be released under a copyright license. Where it is unclear, make it clear what the source or source code means. Q: Can OSS licenses and approaches be used for material other than software? It states that in 1913, the Attorney General developed an opinion (30 Op. The red book section 6.C.3.b explains this prohibition in more detail. Q: What are Open Government Off-the-Shelf (OGOTS) or Government OSS (GOSS)? No. Air Force rarely ranks high on recruiting lists, but this year it brought in the most three-star . The Air Force Institute of Technology, or AFIT, is the Air Force's graduate school of engineering and management as well as its institution for technical professional continuing education. Using a made-up word that has no Google hits is often a good start, but again, see the PTO site for more information. An agency that failed to consider open source software, and instead only considered proprietary software, would fail to comply with these laws, because it would unjustifiably exclude a significant part of the commercial market. Since OSS licenses are quite generous, the only license-violating actions a developer is likely to try is to release software under a more stringent license and those will have little effect if they cannot be enforced in court. Otherwise, choose some existing OSS license, since all existing licenses add some legal protections from lawsuits. Download Adobe Acrobat Reader. Thus, OSS available to the public and used unchanged is normally COTS. The 2003 MITRE study section 1.3.4 outlines several ways to legally mix GPL with proprietary or classified software: Often such separation can occur by separating information into data and a program that uses it, or by defining distinct layers. The NASA FAR Supplement (NFS) 1852.227-14 gives NASA the right, under typical conditions, to demand that a contractor assert copyright and then assign the copyright to the government, which would again give the government the right to release the software as open source software. As stated in FAR 25.103 Exceptions item (e), The restriction on purchasing foreign end products does not apply to the acquisition of information technology that is a commercial item, when using fiscal year 2004 or subsequent fiscal year funds (Section 535(a) of Division F, Title V, Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2004, and similar sections in subsequent appropriations acts).. Problems must be fixed. The DoD does not have a single required process for evaluating OSS. Instead, users who are careful to use open standards can easily switch to a different implementation, including an OSS implementation. It may be illegal to modify proprietary software, but that will normally not slow an attacker. Under the current DoD contracting regime, the contractor usually retains the copyright for software developed with government funding, so in such cases the contractor (not the government) has the right to sue for copyright violation. Thus, open systems require standards that are widely-supported and consensus-based; standards that meet these (and possibly some additional conditions) may be termed open standards. This definition is essentially identical to what the DoD has been using since publication of the 16 October 2009 memorandum from the DoD CIO, Clarifying Guidance Regarding Open Source Software (OSS). Q: Why is it important to understand that open source software is commercial software? The related FAR 52.227-2 (Notice and Assistance Regarding Patent and Copyright Infringement), as prescribed by FAR 27.201-2(b), requires the contractor to report to the Contracting Officer each notice or claim of patent/copyright infrigement in reasonable written detail. What is its relationship to OSS? In the DoD, the GIG Technical Guidance Federation is a useful resource for identifying recommended standards (which tend to be open standards). Software not subject to copyright is often called public domain software. Home use of the antivirus products will not only protect personal PCs, but will also potentially lessen the threat of malicious logic being introduced to the workplace and compromising DoD networks. This approach may inhibit later release of the combined result to other parties (e.g., allies), as release to an ally would likely be considered distribution as defined in the GPL. (4) Waivers for non-FDA approved medications will not be considered. This formal training is supplemented by extensive on-the-job training and accumulated hands on experience gained throughout the Service member's career. The owner of the mark exercises control over the use of the mark; however, because the sole purpose of a certification mark is to indicate that certain standards have been met, use of the mark is by others., You dont have to register a trademark to have a trademark. Coat or jacket depending on the season. An OTD project might be OSS, but it also might not be (it might be OGOTS/GOSS instead). OTD includes both OSS and OGOTS/GOSS. When the software is already deployed, does the project develop and deploy fixes? This does not mean that the DoD will reject using proprietary COTS products. The Department of Defense (DoD) Software Modernization Strategy was approved Feb. 1. Note that under the DoD definition of open source software, such public domain software is open source software. Note that enforcing such separation has many other advantages as well. Note also that merely being developed for the government is no guarantee that there is no malicious embedded code. Choosing between the various options - particularly between permissive, weakly protective, and strongly protective options - is perhaps the most difficult, because this selection depends on your goals, and there are many opinions on which licenses are most appropriate for different circumstances. The United States Air Force operates a service called Iron Bank, which is the DoD Enterprise repository of hardened software containers, many of which are based on open source products. A component of Air University and Air Education and Training Command, AFIT is committed to providing defense-focused graduate and professional continuing education and research to sustain the technological . Be sure to consider such costs over a period of time (typically the lifetime of the system including its upgrades), and use the same period when evaluating alternatives; otherwise, one-time costs (such as costs to transition from an existing proprietary system) can lead to erroneous conclusions. Q: Can contractors develop software for the government and then release it under an open source license? DISA has updated the APL Integrated Tracking System, a web-based user database, to list products that have been approved and the current status of remaining items that are still in process. We also provide some thoughts concerning compliance and risk mitigation in this challenging environment. No. Widely-used programs include the Apache web server, Firefox web browser, Linux kernel, and many other programs. Q: How can you determine if different open source software licenses are compatible? DAF COVID-19 Statistics - January 2022. Many development tools covered by the GPL include libraries and runtimes that are not covered by the GPL itself but the GPL with a runtime exception (e.g., the CLASSPATH exception) that specifically permits development of proprietary software. In 2017, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, in Artifex Software, Inc.v. Hancom, Inc., issued a ruling confirming the enforceability of the GNU General Public License. The example of Borlands InterBase/Firebird is instructive. The Apache 2.0 license is compatible with the GPL version 3 license, but not the GPL version 2 license. This includes the, Strongly Protective (aka strong copyleft): These licenses prevent the software from becoming proprietary, and instead enforce a share and share alike approach. These included the Linux kernel, the gcc compilation suite (including the GNAT Ada compiler), the OpenOffice.org office suite, the emacs text editor, the Nmap network scanner, OpenSSH and OpenSSH for encryption, and Samba for Unix/Linux/Windows interoperability. The public release also makes it easy to have copies of versions in many places, and to compare those versions, making it easy for many people to review changes. If you know of an existing proprietary product meets your needs, searching for its name plus open source source may help. Continuous and broad peer-review, enabled by publicly available source code, improves software reliability and security through the identification and elimination of defects that might otherwise go unrecognized by the core development team. Contractors must still abide with all other laws before being allowed to release anything to the public. . Most projects prefer to receive a set of smaller changes, so that they can review each change for correctness. Choose a widely-used existing license; do not create a new license. As far as I have heard, unless you are a programmer then you aren't getting any actual development software. View the complete AFI 36-2903 for more details. As the program becomes more capable, more users are attracted to using it. Air Force, U.S. Navy, and U.S. Marine Corps, and to participating agencies in-volved with supportability analysis sum-maries and provisioning/item selection functions by, or for, Department of Defense weapons systems, equipment, publications, software and hardware, training, training devices, and support equipment. The FAR and DFARS specifically permit different agreements to be struck, within certain boundaries, and other agencies have other supplements. The government can typically release software as open source software once it has unlimited rights to the software. . It points to various studies related to market share, reliability, performance, scalability, security, and total cost of ownership. Consider anticipated uses. 1498, the exclusive remedy for patent or copyright infringement by or on behalf of the Government is a suit for monetary damages against the Government in the Court of Federal Claims. Various organizations have been formed to reduce patent risks for OSS. These formats may, but need not, be the same. Approved by AF/SG3/5P on 13 May 2019 7700 Arlington Blvd., Falls Church, VA 22042-5158 Category As always, if there are questions, consult your attorney to discuss your specific situation. OGOTS/GOSS software is often not OSS; software is only OSS if it meets the definition of OSS. This strengthens evaluations by focusing on technology specific security requirements. 1342 the Attorney General drew a distinction that the Comptroller of the Treasury thereafter adopted, and that GAO and the Justice Department continue to follow to this daythe distinction between voluntary services and gratuitous services. Some key text from this opinion, as identified by the red book, are: [I]t seems plain that the words voluntary service were not intended to be synonymous with gratuitous service it is evident that the evil at which Congress was aiming was not appointment or employment for authorized services without compensation, but the acceptance of unauthorized services not intended or agreed to be gratuitous and therefore likely to afford a basis for a future claim upon Congress. If there are reviewers from many different backgrounds (e.g., different countries), this can also reduce certain risks. The first-ever Oklahoma Black History Day was celebrated at the state Capitol Feb. 13 with Lt. Gen. Stacey Hawkins, Air Force Sustainment Center commander, serving as the keynote speaker for the event.Hosted by the Oklahoma Legislative Black Caucus, a focus of this . a license) from the copyright holder(s) before they can obtain a copy of software to run on their system(s). It noted that a copyright holder may dedicate a certain work to free public use and yet enforce an open source copyright license to control the future distribution and modification of that work Open source licensing has become a widely used method of creative collaboration that serves to advance the arts and sciences in a manner and at a pace that few could have imagined just a few decades ago Traditionally, copyright owners sold their copyrighted material in exchange for money. Since users will want to use the improvements made by others, they have a strong financial incentive to submit their improvements to the trusted repository. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuits 2008 ruling on Jacobsen v. Katzer made it clear that OSS licenses are enforceable, even if money is not exchanged. Creating any interface is an effort, and having a pre-defined standard helps reduce that effort greatly. Thankfully, there are ways to reduce the risk of executing malicious code when using commercial software (both proprietary and OSS). DFARS 252.227-7014 specifically defines commercial computer software in a way that includes nearly all OSS, and defines noncommercial computer software as software that does not qualify as commercial computer software. Any inconsistencies in this solicitation or contract shall be resolved by giving precedence in the following order: (1) the schedule of supplies/services; (2) the Assignments, Disputes, Payments, Invoice, Other Compliances, and Compliance with Laws Unique to Government Contracts paragraphs of this clause; (3) the clause at 52.212-5; (4) addenda to this solicitation or contract, including any license agreements for computer software; . Tech must enable mission success. OSS-like development approaches within the government. Note that this sometimes depends on how the program is used or modified. An Open Source Community can update the codebase, but they cannot patch your servers. (See next question. Why Open Source Software / Free Software (OSS/FS, FLOSS, or FOSS)? Cisco Systems, Inc. 170 West Tasman Dr. San Jose, CA 95134-1706 USA. In addition, since the source code is publicly released, anyone can review it, including for the possibility of malicious code. It is impossible to completely eliminate all risks; instead, focus on reducing risks to acceptable levels. Approved supplements are maintained by AFCENT/A1RR at afcent.a1rrshaw@afcent.af.mil. In some other cases, the government lacks the rights to release the software to the public, e.g., the government may only have Government Purpose Rights (GPR). 923, is in 31 U.S.C. Open standards also make it easier for OSS developers to create their projects, because the standard itself helps developers know what to do. Such software does not normally undergo widespread public review, indeed, the source code is typically not provided to the public and there are often license clauses that attempt to inhibit review further (e.g., forbidding reverse engineering and/or forbidding the public disclosure of analysis results). The use of commercial products is generally encouraged, and when there are commercial products, the government expects that it will normally use whatever license is offered to the public. In that case, the U.S. government might choose to continue to use the version to which it has unlimited rights, or it might use the publicly-available commercial version available to the government through that versions commercial license (the GPL in this case). ensure that security is designed in from the start and not tacked on as an after thought. Patents expire after 20 years, so any idea (invention) implemented in software publicly available for more than 20 years should not, in theory, be patentable. Thus, complex license management processes to track every installation or use of the software, or who is permitted to use the software, is completely unnecessary. Adobe Acrobat Reader. If this is the case, then the contractor cannot release the software as OSS without permission, because the contractor doesnt own the copyright. "Delivering a more lethal force requires the ability to evolve faster and be more adaptable . . Unfortunately, this typically trades off flexibility; the government does not have the right to modify the software, so it cannot fix serious security problems, add arbitrary improvements, or make the software work on platforms of its choosing. There is no injunctive relief available, and there is no direct cause of action against a contractor that is infringing a patent or copyright with the authorization or consent of the Government (e.g., while performing a contract).. This enables cost-sharing between users, as with proprietary development models. What it does mean, however, is that the DoD will not reject consideration of a COTS product merely because it is OSS. Industry Partners / Employers. Instead, the ADA prohibits government employees from accepting services that are not intended or agreed to be gratuitous, but were instead rendered in the hope that Congress will subsequently recognize a moral obligation to pay for the benefits conferred. In many cases, weakly protective licenses are used for common libraries, while strongly protective licenses are used for applications. (See also Free Software Foundation License List, Public Domain), (See also GPL FAQ, Question Can the US Government release improvements to a GPL-covered program?). Many DoD capabilities are accessible via web browsers using open standards such as TCP/IP, HTTP, and HTML; in such cases, it is relatively easy to use or switch to open source software implementations (since the platforms used to implement the client or server become less relevant). Q: Is OSS commercial software? Another useful source is the list of licenses accepted by the Google code hosting service. Specifically, the federal governments IA controls, as documented in NIST SP 800-53 revision 5 includes a control enhancement, CM-7(8). Vendor lock-in, aka lock-in, is the situation in which customers are dependent on a single supplier for some product (i.e., a good or service), or products, and cannot move to another vendor without substantial costs and/or inconvenience. These services must be genuinely generic in the sense that the applications that use them must not depend on the detailed design of the GPL software to work. The DoDIN APL is managed by the Approved Products Certification Office (APCO). Q: How does open source software work with open systems/open standards? SUBJECT: Software Products Approval Process . Q: Is a lot of pre-existing open source software available? Commercially-available software that is not open source software is typically called proprietary or closed source software. Commercial support can either be through companies with specialize in OSS support (in general or for specific products), or through contractors who specialize in supporting customers and provide the OSS support as part of a larger service. Once software exists, all costs are due to maintenance and support of software. https://www.disa.mil/network-services/ucco, The DoD Cyber Exchange is sponsored by The list of products, referred to as "Blue sUAS," come from 5 different manufacturers: Skydio, Parrot, Altavian, Teal Drones, and Vantage Robotics. Where possible, software developed partly by government funds should broken into a set of smaller components at the lowest practicable level so the rules can be applied separately to each one. Most commercial software (including OSS) is not designed for such purposes. Bases. Failing to understand that open source software is commercial software would result in failing to follow the laws, regulations, policies, and so on regarding commercial software. If you have concerns about using in-house staff, augmented by the OSS community for those components, then select and pay a commercial organization to provide the necessary support. In practice, OSS projects tend to be remarkably clean of such issues. (Note that such software would often be classifed.).
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