Buying down risk: Open source software

Issue Brief Mar 21, 2025

To win the AI race, the US needs an all-of-the-above energy strategy

By Joseph Webster

To ensure US AI leadership, the United States must harness all forms of energy, allow a level playing field, and remove red tape constraining the buildout of critical enablers, especially transmission lines and grid enhancing technologies.
Artificial Intelligence China
Buying down risk: Open source software

MENASource Feb 26, 2025

How the Houthis’ strikes on US MQ-9 Reaper drones serve a wider regional agenda

By Leonardo Jacopo Maria Mazzucco

The United States needs to adjust its drone deployment strategy to ensure that MQ-9 Reapers are less vulnerable to the militant group’s attacks. 
Defense Policy Defense Technologies
Buying down risk: Open source software

New Atlanticist Feb 18, 2025

What’s missing from the AI debate? Patience.

By Trey Herr

The AI sector is evolving quickly, fueled by a self-reinforcing cycle of investment, commentary, and ambition. In this race for compute, patience is important to sorting out sustainable innovation from speculative excess.
Artificial Intelligence Defense Technologies

Democracy & Tech Initiative

The DFRLab’s Democracy & Tech Initiative creates policy practices that align global stakeholders toward tech and governance that reinforces, rather than undermines, open societies. This initiative builds on the DFRLab’s leadership in the OSINT field, empowering global communities to promote transparency and accountability.

Explore the program

Content

Buying Down Risk

May 3, 2022

Buying down risk: Open source software

By Trey Herr, Robert Morgus, Stewart Scott, and Tianjiu Zuo

Open-source software underpins most modern code, and the unique incentives and constraints its developers face pose a tricky set of challenges for the cybersecurity ecosystem.

Cybersecurity Technology & Innovation

Buying Down Risk

May 3, 2022

Buying down risk: Complexity management

By Trey Herr, Robert Morgus, Stewart Scott, and Tianjiu Zuo

The ever-increasing complexity of software programs and services can become a security and operational challenge in and of itself, increasing ecosystem-wide risk.

Cybersecurity Technology & Innovation

Buying Down Risk

May 3, 2022

Buying down risk: Software provenance and composition

By Trey Herr, Robert Morgus, Stewart Scott, and Tianjiu Zuo

SBoM adoption is picking up pace, aiming to provide better insight into and contractual leverage for software components—increased investment, standardization, and coordination can help fully develop SBoM use.

Cybersecurity Technology & Innovation

Buying Down Risk

May 3, 2022

Buying down risk: Cyber poverty line

By Trey Herr, Robert Morgus, Stewart Scott, and Tianjiu Zuo

Many enterprises face systemic challenges to their cybersecurity posture, from resource shortages to suboptimal risk attitudes, all of which weaken an ecosystem only as secure as its weakest links.

Cybersecurity Technology & Innovation

Buying Down Risk

May 3, 2022

Buying down risk: Cyber liability

By Trey Herr, Robert Morgus, Stewart Scott, and Tianjiu Zuo

Despite software's ubiquity and omnipresent vulnerability, conventions around liability for software producers are still informal and rarely enforced.

Cybersecurity Technology & Innovation

Buying Down Risk

May 3, 2022

Buying down risk: Memory safety

By Trey Herr, Robert Morgus, Stewart Scott, and Tianjiu Zuo

Some coding languages, like C and C++, allow for a common, exceptionally dangerous bug called a memory safety error, comprising up to 70 percent of industry vulnerabilities.

Cybersecurity Technology & Innovation

Buying Down Risk

May 3, 2022

Buying down risk in the cyber ecosystem: Arguments for the national cybersecurity strategy

By Trey Herr, Robert Morgus, Stewart Scott, and Tianjiu Zuo

The private sector has enormous influence over the cybersecurity ecosystem. Security investments stemming from enterprise and prioritizing a more resilient environment over reacting to emerging incidents can have massive impact at scale.

Cybersecurity Technology & Innovation

UkraineAlert

May 2, 2022

Lavrov’s anti-Semitic outburst exposes absurdity of Russia’s “Nazi Ukraine” claims

By Peter Dickinson

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has sparked a diplomatic scandal with an anti-Semitic outburst that underlines the absurdity of Russia’s relentless “Nazi Ukraine” propaganda claims.

Conflict Democratic Transitions

UkraineAlert

Apr 30, 2022

Ukraine War Diary: “You can never really get used to the air raid sirens”

By Vitaly Sych

Ukrainian media personality Vitaly Sych has kept a war diary recounting his experiences and observations during the past two terrifying and heroic months as Ukrainians have adjusted to Vladimir Putin’s criminal invasion.

Conflict Cybersecurity
Screenshot of footage from a Russian report on a supposed Ukrainian missile downed in Kherson. (SOURCE: Izvestia)

New Atlanticist

Apr 29, 2022

Russian War Report: Questions around metadata on video of Kherson explosion aftermath

By Digital Forensic Research Lab

In occupied Kherson, Russian media reported that Russian forces shot down a Ukrainian missile that they claim was aimed at a TV antenna, but metadata shows the report was shot hours before the explosions.

Disinformation Eastern Europe
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Experts

Fellow

Itai Melchior

Nonresident Senior Fellow, N7 Initiative

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs

Artificial Intelligence Economy & Business

European Leadership Accelerator Participant

Osman Haneef

Head of LBS Startup Incubator & Senior Manager of Ventures, London Business School

Millennium Leadership Program

Entrepreneurship Rule of Law

Staff

Tatevik Khachatryan

Assistant Director, Events

Armenian Digital Policy

Fellow

Robert Fardi

Nonresident Senior Fellow, N7 Initiative

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs

Economy & Business Israel

European Leadership Accelerator Participant

Salam Nukta

Innovation, Sustainability and Social Entrepreneurship Professional, Warsha Consulting

Millennium Leadership Program

Education Entrepreneurship

Fellow

Sudeep Kanungo

Nonresident Senior Fellow

GeoTech Center

Africa Energy & Environment
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Events

Online Event Thu, June 12, 2025 • 9:00 am ET

Why the UN’s Internet Governance Forum still matters twenty years on
Digital Policy Internet Internet of Things Technology & Innovation