Companies Are Avoiding Open Source Software Citing Security Concerns

Open source software is a tantalizing option, but in spite of the fact that this is the case it seems like most companies find that it is just not worth the risk. VMware recently published a report that showed that OSS seems to have some significant security concerns that are making businesses hesitant to work with it because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up exposing their systems to cyber attacks and other threats.

53% of companies said that they are avoiding open source software out of fear of increase cyberattacks, but with all of that having been said and now out of the way it is important to note that this is not their biggest concern. That dubious honor goes to the lack of non-community oriented solutions for fixing vulnerabilities and security flaws with all things having been considered and taken into account.

50% also cited a dearth of patches that have service level agreements, since that can make them less secure than might have been the case otherwise. The report goes on to expound the importance of open source software in helping businesses manage their supply chains, but an abundance of tools and a lack of standardization in help manuals can be a hurdle for that.

60% of businesses that responded to this survey said that they would like to be able to immediately access security patches, with automated virus scanning being a preference for 51% as well. 41% of firms are currently unconfident in their ability to secure their systems while using open source software, and that is a problem that would need to be resolved otherwise its usage would continue to decline.

The benefits of open source software are many and varied, but it can be hard for businesses to rely on them given the current state of cybersecurity. It will be interesting to see if this community oriented approach changes now that OSS is a mainstay of so many major firms and corporations, and to see if that will impact its popularity in the wider world of non-commercial users.
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