CFPB Goes Open Source

Data is the content that is input into computer software, source code is the instructions that tell the software how to work.  Software users usually never see the source code as it works behind a more intuitive, human-friendly interface. 

Some proprietary software will allow the user to modify the code if it doesn't accomplish exactly what the user wants but open-source code allows anyone to tweak, modify or improve the software.  Until recently the federal government has avoided the use of open source code but in 2009 the Department of Defense gave it a boost by putting it on an equal footing with its proprietary counterparts. 

Now the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau CFPB has thrown upon the doors with a new policy regarding the use of open source code.  Saying that it was "fortunate to be born in the digital era" it announced that the first part of it policy would be unequivocal; "We use open-source software because it helps us fulfill our mission."

A press release from CFPB said it has been able to rethink many of the practices that make financial products confusing to consumers and some regulations burdensome for businesses and has been able to launch the bureau with a state-of-the-art technical infrastructure more stable and cost effective than it would have been even ten years ago.  While the current technology is great the release says the Bureau will fail its mission if it is still using the same tools ten years from now.  "If we decide one day to move our web site to another platform, we don't have to worry about whether the current platform is going to keep us from exporting all of our data."  It also will let the bureau use tailor-made tools without having to build those tools from scratch, doing things nobody else has ever done and doing them quickly.

Open source software works because it enables people from around the world to share their contributions with each other and CFPB said that, as it has benefited tremendously from other people's efforts it is only right that they give back their work to others.

Therefore the second part of the policy is whether CFPB builds their own software or contract it out, they will share it with the public at no charge except when it exposes sensitive details that might put it at risk for security breaches, "but we believe that, in general, hiding source code does not make the software safer."

As the CFPB is using public dollars to create the source code, it says the public should have access to that creation.  It will also give the public a window into how a government agency conducts its business, and makes products better.  By letting the development community propose modifications, bureau software will become more stable, more secure, and more powerful with less time and expense from our team. "Sharing our code positions us to maintain a technological pace that would otherwise be impossible for a government agency."