What’s in the SOSS? Podcast #70 – S3E22 Private Forks, CRA Deadlines, and the True Cost of Open Source Compliance with Dave Russo
Brief
Summary
In this episode of What’s in the SOSS, host Sally Cooper sits down with returning champion Dave Russo, Policy and Standards Lead at Red Hat’s Open Source and AI Program Office, to unpack the European Union’s Cyber Resilience Act (CRA).
Together, they explore the stark realities of the 2026 CRA Awareness and Readiness Report, exposing why three-quarters of North American tech companies remain completely unaware of the strictest cybersecurity mandate in history.
Dave breaks down the hidden $250,000-per-release financial toll of maintaining private forks, the crucial legal distinction between software manufacturers and open source stewards, and Red Hat’s framework for “champion stewardship.”