I’m predicting this to be a real shitshow.
https://developersalliance.org/open-source-liability-is-coming/
Link to external blog entry
I did a lot of time in the US federal government space. In the latter part of my career there, there was a big push to stop using open source software as much as possible due to supply chain concerns. I didn’t like it. I didn’t want to exclude open source software from our toolset. But the US government wanted a single person to smack around with a trout if things went wonky.
The EU seems to be taking it an unnecessary step further. If your open source software is perceived to cause any kind of harm, the developer is on the hook to prove that’s not the case. What an absolute disaster this could be for developers.
I have always thought that Europe was the origin of more open source developers and software. I’ve always thought it must be nice to live in an area where open source is so prevalent and accepted. This U-turn is a real surprise to me.
If I were to ever write an app… at this point, I’m pretty sure I would not release it in the EU.