Coordinated Vulnerability Disclosure (CVD) stands as a consensus
response to the persistent fact of vulnerable software, yet few
performance indicators have been proposed to measure its efficacy at the
broadest scales. In this report, we seek to fill that gap. We begin by
deriving a model of all possible CVD histories from first principles,
organizing those histories into a partial ordering based on a set of
desired criteria. We then compute a baseline expectation for the
frequency of each desired criteria and propose a new set of performance
indicators to measure the efficacy of CVD practices based on the
differentiation of skill and luck in observation data. As a proof of
concept, we apply these indicators to a variety of longitudinal
observations of CVD practice and find evidence of significant skill to
be prevalent. We conclude with reflections on how this model and its
accompanying performance indicators could be used by various
stakeholders (vendors, system owners, coordinators, and governments) to
interpret the quality of their CVD practices.
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This material is based upon work funded and supported by the Department of Defense under Contract No. FA8702-15-D-0002 with Carnegie Mellon University for the operation of the Software Engineering Institute, a federally funded research and development center. The view, opinions, and/or findings contained in this material are those of the author(s) and should not be construed as an official Government position, policy, or decision, unless designated by other documentation. References herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by Carnegie Mellon University or its Software Engineering Institute.
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