Evaluation of the European Commission's Proposed Cyber Resilience Act
The European Union's proposed Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) aims to improve cybersecurity practices in connected devices within the EU, a critical step in countering global cybersecurity threats. However, concerns have been raised, particularly by the Center for Data Innovation and open source software advocates, regarding the potential negative impact on innovation, competition, and Europe's digital sovereignty goals.
The CRA's broad regulatory framework, if implemented without careful consideration, could stifle open source software development, a sector heavily reliant on free and open source components. Critics argue that the CRA's unclear definition of "commercial activity" and excessive regulatory burden could hamper the rollout of new technologies, reducing competitiveness.
Moreover, the CRA's assumptions about the ease of securing software may be unrealistic, given the resource constraints faced by many open source developers. The potential mismatch between government-level security standards and the resources available could force small or volunteer-driven projects out of compliance.
Another concern is the potential misalignment between the CRA and other EU rules, leading to confusion or duplicative burdens. Additionally, the heavy penalties under the CRA, up to 2.5 times a company's annual revenue per infraction, could be catastrophic for non-compliant companies, particularly those heavily reliant on open source components.
To address these issues, the Center for Data Innovation and other stakeholders propose several solutions. Greater inclusion and consultation with the open source community in the policy-making process could help ensure the unique nature of open source software is recognized and beneficial innovation is not inadvertently suppressed.
Clearer definitions and scope of "commercial activity" would prevent voluntarily maintained or non-commercial open source projects from being unintentionally penalized or burdened. Flexible compliance frameworks, such as tiered or scalable security requirements based on project size, resources, and risk profile, could help smaller or volunteer-driven projects comply without crippling costs.
Aligning the CRA with other EU cybersecurity laws would reduce complexity and help companies comply more effectively without redundant or conflicting demands. The EU or member states could also provide funding, guidance, and tools to help smaller projects improve security practices without imposing prohibitive costs.
Promoting transparency without overly harsh penalties would ensure accountability while avoiding punitive outcomes that discourage innovation, particularly for projects contributing widely to the software ecosystem.
The Center for Data Innovation has submitted its feedback on the Cyber Resilience Act, emphasizing the potential burden of compliance for businesses and the need for clearer definitions in the legislation. By addressing these concerns, the CRA can promote better cybersecurity in the internal market without hurting competition and innovation across Europe.
- The CRA's broad regulatory framework could inadvertently suppress innovation within open source software development, as its unclear definition of "commercial activity" and excessive regulatory burden may hamper the rollout of new technologies.
- The potential mismatch between government-level security standards and the resources available to open source developers could force small or volunteer-driven projects out of compliance, highlighting the need for flexible compliance frameworks.
- To ensure the unique nature of open source software is recognized and beneficial innovation is not inadvertently suppressed, greater inclusion and consultation with the open source community in the policy-making process is proposed.
