📄️ CRA's Approach to Ongoing Software Security: Beyond Market Placement
The Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) makes it clear: launching your app, game, or software is just the beginning of your security responsibilities. The Act places significant emphasis on the security of your product throughout its entire lifecycle, particularly during its defined "support period".
📄️ Establishing a Coordinated Vulnerability Disclosure (CVD) Policy for Your Software
Under the Cyber Resilience Act (CRA), just waiting for vulnerability reports isn't enough. You need a proactive and structured approach. Annex I, Part II, point (5), requires manufacturers to "put in place and enforce a policy on coordinated vulnerability disclosure". Recital 76 further emphasizes this, suggesting it facilitates reporting from individuals or entities.
📄️ Setting Up Channels for Receiving Software Vulnerability Reports
The Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) requires you to make it easy for people to tell you about potential security weaknesses in your app, game, or software. This isn't just good practice; it's a specific obligation.
📄️ Internal Processes for Assessing and Prioritizing Reported Software Vulnerabilities
So, your vulnerability reporting channels are open, and a report about a potential weakness in your app or game lands in your inbox. What now? The Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) implies you need robust internal processes to handle these. A key part of "address and remediate vulnerabilities without delay" (Annex I, Part II, point (2)) is first understanding what you're dealing with.
📄️ Developing and Testing Software Security Patches and Updates
You've identified a vulnerability in your game, app, or software component. The Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) requires you to "address and remediate vulnerabilities without delay, including by providing security updates" (Annex I, Part II, point (2)). This means not just finding the problem, but actually fixing it and making sure the fix works.
📄️ Securely Distributing Software Updates to Users
You've developed and tested a crucial security update for your app or game. Now, how do you get it to your users safely? The Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) mandates that you "provide for mechanisms to securely distribute updates" (Annex I, Part II, point (7)). This is vital because a compromised update mechanism can be a goldmine for attackers.
📄️ SBOM Maintenance: Keeping Your Software Component List Current
The Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) introduces the concept of a Software Bill of Materials (SBOM) as a key part of your vulnerability handling process. Annex I, Part II, point (1), requires manufacturers to "identify and document vulnerabilities and components contained in products with digital elements, including by drawing up a software bill of materials".
📄️ Communicating Software Vulnerabilities and Fixes to Users and Authorities
Fixing a vulnerability in your app or game is only part of the job under the Cyber Resilience Act (CRA). You also have responsibilities to communicate this information effectively.
📄️ Timeline for Addressing Software Vulnerabilities: "Without Delay"
The Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) uses the term "without delay" when it talks about your obligations to fix and provide updates for vulnerabilities in your app, game, or software. But what does that actually mean in practice?
📄️ Free Security Updates vs. Paid Feature Updates for Software Under CRA
The Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) draws an important line when it comes to how you charge for updates to your app, game, or software. Security is not meant to be a premium add-on.
📄️ Support Period: Defining and Communicating It for Your Software Product
The Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) introduces a crucial concept: the "support period." This isn't just about customer service; it's the timeframe during which you, the software manufacturer, are obligated to handle vulnerabilities effectively as per Annex I, Part II.
📄️ Incident Response Plan for Security Breaches Affecting Your Software
While the Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) primarily focuses on the security of products with digital elements and the manufacturer's processes for vulnerability handling, a natural extension of this is being prepared for when things go wrong. If a security breach affects your app, game, or software, having an incident response plan is crucial.
📄️ Reporting Actively Exploited Vulnerabilities & Severe Incidents for Software (Article 14)
The Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) doesn't just want you to fix problems in your app, game, or software; it also mandates reporting certain serious issues to authorities. Article 14 is your go-to for these critical reporting obligations.