Article 24 Obligations of open-source software stewards

Summary What does Article 24 of the CRA regulation say?

This article carves out a tailored regime for open-source software stewards, a category of legal person distinct from manufacturers that supports the development of free and open-source software intended for commercial activities.

Rather than applying the full manufacturer obligations found elsewhere in the regulation, Article 24 establishes a lighter-touch but still meaningful set of requirements.

The core obligation is to have a documented, verifiable cybersecurity policy covering how vulnerabilities are handled, reported, and shared within the open-source community.

The article also connects directly to Article 14, extending certain incident and vulnerability reporting obligations to stewards, but only to the extent they are involved in development or where severe incidents affect their own systems.

Important points:

Open-source software stewards are required to put in place and document a verifiable cybersecurity policy covering vulnerability handling, remediation, and information sharing within the open-source community.
Open-source software stewards must cooperate with market surveillance authorities on request and provide their cybersecurity policy documentation in a language easily understood by those authorities.
Reporting obligations from Article 14 apply to open-source software stewards, but only in a scoped manner — vulnerability reporting applies where they are involved in development, and severe incident reporting applies where their own systems are affected.

Springlex's summary of the article, a reading aid, not a substitute for the legal text.

1. Open-source software stewards shall put in place and document in a verifiable manner a cybersecurity policy to foster the development of a secure product with digital elements as well as an effective handling of vulnerabilities by the developers of that product. That policy shall also foster the voluntary reporting of vulnerabilities as laid down in Article 15 by the developers of that product and take into account the specific nature of the open-source software steward and the legal and organisational arrangements to which it is subject. That policy shall, in particular, include aspects related to documenting, addressing and remediating vulnerabilities and promote the sharing of information concerning discovered vulnerabilities within the open-source community.
1. Open-source software stewards shall cooperate with the market surveillance authorities, at their request, with a view to mitigating the cybersecurity risks posed by a product with digital elements qualifying as free and open-source software.
2. Further to a reasoned request from a market surveillance authority, open-source software stewards shall provide that authority, in a language which can be easily understood by that authority, with the documentation referred to in paragraph 1, in paper or electronic form.
1. The obligations laid down in Article 14(1) shall apply to open-source software stewards to the extent that they are involved in the development of the products with digital elements. The obligations laid down in Article 14(3) and (8) shall apply to open-source software stewards to the extent that severe incidents having an impact on the security of products with digital elements affect network and information systems provided by the open-source software stewards for the development of such products.

Relevant recitals

Recital 17 Application considering free and open-source software

Software and data that are openly shared and where users can freely access, use, modify and redistribute them or modified versions thereof, can contribute to research and innovation in the market. To foster the development and deployment of free and open-source software, in particular by microenterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises, including start-ups, individuals, not-for-profit organisations, and academic research organisations, the application of this Regulation to products with digital elements qualifying as free and open-source software supplied for distribution or use in the course of a commercial activity should take into account the nature of the different development models of software distributed and developed under free and open-source software licences.

Recital 18 Definition of free and open-source software

Free and open-source software is understood as software the source code of which is openly shared and the licensing of which provides for all rights to make it freely accessible, usable, modifiable and redistributable. Free and open-source software is developed, maintained and distributed openly, including via online platforms. In relation to economic operators that fall within the scope of this Regulation, only free and open-source software made available on the market, and therefore supplied for distribution or use in the course of a commercial activity, should fall within the scope of this Regulation. The mere circumstances under which the product with digital elements has been developed, or how the development has been financed, should therefore not be taken into account when determining the commercial or non-commercial nature of that activity. More specifically, for the purposes of this Regulation and in relation to the economic operators that fall within its scope, to ensure that there is a clear distinction between the development and supply phases, the provision of products with digital elements qualifying as free and open-source software that are not monetised by their manufacturers should not be considered to be a commercial activity. Furthermore, the supply of products with digital elements qualifying as free and open-source software components intended for integration by other manufacturers into their own products with digital elements should be considered to be making available on the market only if the component is monetised by its original manufacturer. For instance, the mere fact that an open-source software product with digital elements receives financial support from manufacturers or that manufacturers contribute to the development of such a product should not in itself determine that the activity is of commercial nature. In addition, the mere presence of regular releases should not in itself lead to the conclusion that a product with digital elements is supplied in the course of a commercial activity. Finally, for the purposes of this Regulation, the development of products with digital elements qualifying as free and open-source software by not-for-profit organisations should not be considered to be a commercial activity provided that the organisation is set up in such a way that ensures that all earnings after costs are used to achieve not-for-profit objectives. This Regulation does not apply to natural or legal persons who contribute with source code to products with digital elements qualifying as free and open-source software that are not under their responsibility.

Recital 19 Regulatory regime for open-source software stewards

Taking into account the importance for cybersecurity of many products with digital elements qualifying as free and open-source software that are published, but not made available on the market within the meaning of this Regulation, legal persons who provide support on a sustained basis for the development of such products which are intended for commercial activities, and who play a main role in ensuring the viability of those products (open-source software stewards), should be subject to a light-touch and tailor-made regulatory regime. Open-source software stewards include certain foundations as well as entities that develop and publish free and open-source software in a business context, including not-for-profit entities. The regulatory regime should take account of their specific nature and compatibility with the type of obligations imposed. It should only cover products with digital elements qualifying as free and open-source software that are ultimately intended for commercial activities, such as for integration into commercial services or into monetised products with digital elements. For the purposes of that regulatory regime, an intention for integration into monetised products with digital elements includes cases where manufacturers that integrate a component into their own products with digital elements either contribute to the development of that component in a regular manner or provide regular financial assistance to ensure the continuity of a software product. The provision of sustained support to the development of a product with digital elements includes but is not limited to the hosting and managing of software development collaboration platforms, the hosting of source code or software, the governing or managing of products with digital elements qualifying as free and open-source software as well as the steering of the development of such products. Given that the light-touch and tailor-made regulatory regime does not subject those acting as open-source software stewards to the same obligations as those acting as manufacturers under this Regulation, they should not be permitted to affix the CE marking to the products with digital elements whose development they support.

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