Quantifying the Real Risks of Unsupported Open Source Software
A data-backed look at the security, compliance, and operational risks created by unsupported open source—and how long-term support models like NES help organizations stay secure and audit-ready.
Open source now powers nearly every modern application, but when the components enterprises rely on reach end-of-life, the security guarantees disappear overnight. Unsupported OSS introduces silent, compounding risks—unpatched vulnerabilities, audit failures, operational instability, and modernization bottlenecks that can halt entire roadmaps.
This whitepaper breaks down the real, quantifiable impact of running EOL OSS: how vulnerabilities accumulate without remediation, why compliance frameworks increasingly mandate active support, and the hidden engineering costs of maintaining software the community has stopped updating. It also examines why traditional approaches—rapid upgrades, internal forks, or accepting the risk—consistently fail at scale.
Finally, we explore how commercial long-term support models like HeroDevs Never-Ending Support (NES) are reshaping enterprise risk management by delivering secure, SLA-backed patches for unsupported frameworks and giving teams the ability to modernize on their own timelines. Dive into the data, the case studies, and the strategic path forward for organizations that depend on open source at scale.