Improving the health and security of open source is an old problem. In the past 25 years companies have been formed, foundations have been funded, treatises have been written, and standards have been created, all in the name of making open source software more secure and resilient.
Yet, here we are in 2024 and the security and resilience of open source is still not a solved problem.
In fact, one might argue that, despite all of the sound and fury invested in improving open source security, that the situation is more dire than ever. Rising consumption of open source further stresses an already strained system that sees large enterprise users relying heavily on open source projects created and maintained by volunteers. The increasing popularity of open source has also made it an even more tempting target for those who seek to exploit it, and highly visible vulnerabilities like Log4Shell have only added to the pressure.
For Upstream 2024, we’ve chosen the theme “unusual ideas to solve the usual problems.” This year’s event will be fully virtual again, taking place Wednesday, June 5, from 11 a.m. ET to 5 p.m. ET. You can RSVP now!
Our goal for this year’s event is to curate a set of presentations and conversations featuring those who are pursuing exciting new approaches to improving open source health and security, those who are attacking a very old problem in very new ways.
We’ll bring together open source maintainers and those who use their creations alongside government leaders, thought leaders, while also gaining inspiration from visionaries tackling parallel challenges in other fields.
Our hope is that those who attend come away refreshed, rejuvenated, and with new energy to tackle ensuring the security and resilience of the open source software we all depend on in new, unusual, and exciting ways.
We look forward to seeing you there!