In this lesson,
we're going to explore responsible disclosure programs.
Responsible disclosure is a term used
to describe the ethical practice
where a security researcher is going to disclose information
about a vulnerability in a software, hardware,
or online service in a confidential manner
to the relevant stakeholders,
such as the software developers themself,
or the company who created the product or service.
With responsible disclosure,
our goal is to allow the affected party enough time
to address the vulnerability
before a public disclosure occurs.
So what does responsible disclosure look like?
Well, let's pretend that a security researcher
just discovered a new vulnerability
in a particular software application.
Before they post about it in their blog,
they should first contact the owner or developer
of that effective product, service, or system privately
through some kind of official communication channel,
like sending them an email
to that organization's cybersecurity team.
The researcher will usually provide the organization
with enough information for them to fully understand
and replicate that vulnerability.
The security researcher and the organization
will then agree upon a timeframe
before a public disclosure is going to be made.
That way, the organization can work
to mitigate that vulnerability and deploy a security fix
or hotfix to patch that software for all of its end users.
Now, once the vulnerability has been addressed,
or after the expiration of the agreed upon timeframe,
the researcher will then be allowed
to disclose the information publicly
to the rest of the cybersecurity community.
This process ensures that the vulnerability
is not maliciously exploited by a threat actor,
while legitimate end users are still waiting
for the software developer
to create some kind of a hotfix or security fix
and then deploy it to all of their customers.
This kind of responsible disclosure is great,
but many organizations actually take it a step further
by developing a robust responsible disclosure program
known as a bug bounty program.
Now, an organization can create a bug bounty program
to encourage cybersecurity researchers
to find and report vulnerabilities
in the organization's own systems.
By offering monetary rewards
to the cybersecurity researchers
when they find a validated vulnerability
in the organization's software, the security researchers
are being incentivized to participate
in our organization's responsible disclosure program
in a more controlled and ethical manner.
Now, bug bounty programs
can be run internally by an organization,
or they can be facilitated
through a third-party platform that specializes
in connecting security researchers with an organization.
There are many publicly available
bug bounty competitions available
on platforms like HackerOne, Bugcrowd, and Synack,
which all provide security researchers
a structured environment
where they can submit the vulnerabilities
that they discovered directly for verification,
prioritization, and mitigation
by the owners of the software or service.
Now, your organization will find
that there are several benefits to implementing
one of these responsible disclosure and bug bounty programs.
First, bug bounty programs help to increase the security
of your organization.
By opening up the systems
to additional scrutiny by external security researchers,
an organization can uncover and fix vulnerabilities
that might have been overlooked by their internal teams
or external consultants and penetration testers
that may have been contracted to do it for them.
Second, bug bounty programs
can foster community collaboration.
By establishing a channel of communication
with security researchers,
organizations can build a community
that's invested in the security
and reliability of their products.
Third, bug bounty programs are very cost-effective.
Traditional security assessments and penetration testing
can be really expensive to perform,
but a bug bounty program allows the organization
to only pay for vulnerabilities
that were found in their software,
and the compensation level can be based on the severity
or seriousness of the vulnerability
that's being submitted by that cybersecurity researcher.
But we also have some challenges and considerations
that come with running a responsible disclosure
or bug bounty program.
Your organization has to ensure clear communication
is occurring regarding the scope of the program,
the rules of engagement,
and the rewards that are going to be issued
to ensure your program will be successful.
It's also critical to establish legal protections
for your cybersecurity researchers
who are going to be acting in good faith
to ensure they're not held liable for any issues
that may occur as a result of their participation
inside of the bug bounty program
as long as they stay within the rules of engagement
that you've set up for your particular program.
So, if you want to create an effective responsible disclosure
or bug bounty program,
you need to make sure you're also following
some good industry best practices for doing these programs.
Your program must have a clearly defined scope
so people know what is and is not part of your program
in terms of what they're allowed to do.
Also, you want to clearly tell your researchers what testing
or programing is going to be allowed and on what systems.
That way, they can make sure
they're not affecting your operations
while they're still trying to find
all these security vulnerabilities.
Your organization should also establish
a proper communication channel
to ensure there's a clear responsive channel
for reporting any vulnerabilities
that a cybersecurity researcher finds.
Additionally, your program needs to set up
some sort of a reward structure
that will clearly define the available rewards or bounties
for any newly discovered vulnerabilities,
and the levels of these bounties are going to be in alignment
with the risk and potential impact
of the discovered vulnerability.
If somebody finds a remote code execution
that we would consider to be a level 9
or level 10 vulnerability,
that's going to pay a lot more money
than something like an information leak
that may only be a level 1 or level 2 vulnerability.
Another key to a successful program
is to create clear timeframes for the acknowledgement,
validation, and remediation of any reported vulnerabilities.
After all, if a security researcher takes the time
to find a vulnerability in your system and reports it,
they want to make sure they're hearing from you
that you've received it, that you've analyzed it,
and that they've been awarded some sort of compensation
or bounty for finding that vulnerability
once you verify it was a real vulnerability in your system.
Also, you want to make sure you're having full transparency
inside of your bug bounty program.
That way, once the vulnerabilities are resolved,
you can also share what you learn
with others in your community or your industry
so that all of our systems can become more secure over time.
So remember, when we talk about a responsible disclosure,
we're talking about a term
that's used to describe an ethical practice
where a security researcher is going to disclose information
about vulnerabilities in a piece of software, hardware,
or online service in a confidential manner
to the relevant stakeholders.
Responsible disclosure and bug bounty programs
are going to represent a collaborative
and proactive approach to cybersecurity
by engaging with the wider security community
to create a more secure and robust digital landscape.
These programs can turn potential adversaries into allies
by leveraging the collective intelligence
and skills of the global cybersecurity community
to find vulnerabilities
in our organization's products and services too.