A new security fund opens up to help protect the fediverse

The fediverse, also known as the open social web that includes Mastodon, Meta’s Threads, Pixelfed, and other apps, is ramping up its security. On Wednesday, a nonprofit focused on bringing governance to open source projects, the Nivenly Foundation, announced the launch of a new security fund that will pay those who responsibly disclose security vulnerabilities that affect fediverse apps and services. While all software can have security issues, Mastodon — an open source and decentralized alternative to X — has fixed numerous bugs over the years, leading to the need for such a program. Another issue found in the fediverse is that many servers are run by independent operators who don’t necessarily have a security background or understand best practices. Already, the Nivenly Foundation has helped a few fediverse projects set up their basic security vulnerability reporting process, and now it’s looking to distribute small payouts to anyone who responsibly discloses other security vulnera ... Read full article.