Disclosing the Disclosures

Vulnerability disclosure is no longer a niche concern, it is a strategic imperative for organizations navigating today’s threat landscape. This talk offers a practical framework for understanding and operationalizing disclosure models, drawing from global standards, vendor policies, and real-world coordination practices. It maps the disclosure spectrum from responsible and coordinated models to phased, partial, and full disclosure, emphasizing the importance of timing, stakeholder alignment, and risk mitigation.

We address the legal and reputational risks of irresponsible disclosure, including premature release of exploit code and activities outside policy scope. Analyze enforcement mechanisms under U.S. law (CFAA) and EU regulations (Directive 2013/40/EU, Cyber Resilience Act), offering practical guidance for organizations and researchers to avoid liability while promoting security.

A key strategic insight is the delineation of the vulnerability market into white, grey, and black sectors. The white market, anchored by Bug Bounty Programs and Vulnerability Disclosure Policies, offers a structured, incentivized path for ethical reporting. In contrast, the grey market, dominated by zero-day brokers, and the black market, driven by cybercriminals, present escalating risks to digital infrastructure. The talk critiques the ethical ambiguity of grey market transactions and calls for stronger norms and safe harbors to protect researchers operating in good faith.

Finally, the talk proposes stakeholder-specific timing guidance (“the WHEN”), offering actionable recommendations for academia, bounty hunters, vendor-employed researchers, and affected organizations. It advocates for phased disclosure models that align incentives, reduce risk, and improve collective resilience. By bridging technical rigor with strategic foresight, this work equips security leaders, policymakers, and vendors with a roadmap for responsible vulnerability management in an era of accelerating threats.

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