Major technology companies are starting a joint initiative to fund...

Major technology companies are starting a joint initiative to fund open source projects essential to Internet infrastructure, said the companies -- including Amazon, Facebook, Google and Microsoft -- in a Thursday news release (http://bit.ly/1k8So7W). The project, dubbed the Core Infrastructure Initiative (CII), will be housed at the Linux Foundation, they said. The group was “inspired” to action because of the Heartbleed bug, which crippled OpenSSL, built on Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), an open-source cryptographic software library used to secure websites using HTTPS encryption to protect data (CD April 11p13). “Members of CII will evaluate open source projects that are essential to global computing infrastructure and are experiencing under-investment,” said the group. “Support from the initiative can include funding for fellowships for key developers to work full time on the open source project, security audits, computing and test infrastructure, travel, face-to-face meeting coordination and other support."