Homeland Open Source Technology Fact Sheet

Open source software (OSS) provides many innovative security solutions that government is not yet successfully leveraging. OSS is software where the source code is available for use, modification and redistribution. Active OSS projects produce rapid innovations and encourage inclusive development, making them more responsive to specialized requirements. If something needs to be modified, you can access the code and make the change. This flexibility, coupled with the rapid pace of innovation, makes open source security technology an important solution source, which is important for the government to leverage. Homeland Open Source Technology (HOST) is working to enable better use of OSS by the government.