"Why the FDA's SBOM Mandate Changes the Game for OSS Security"

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is not the first thing that comes to mind for most Open Source Software (OSS) project maintainers or the developers who build applications that leverage OSS. However, new FDA rules may have a greater impact on OSS security than any other government rule to date. On October 1, 2023, the FDA will begin enforcing its mandate that all medical devices running software must create and maintain a Software Bill of Materials (SBOM). The new policy addresses concerns regarding healthcare devices' critical software-powered components not being adequately protected. Medical institutions are one of the common targets of ransomware attacks, and hackers are expected to increasingly target medical devices. This article continues to discuss the new FDA SBOM guidelines for medical devices that could have a broad impact on the healthcare industry and the broader open source ecosystem. 

Dark Reading reports "Why the FDA's SBOM Mandate Changes the Game for OSS Security"