Open-Source Ages Like Milk, Not Wine.

In the world of open source, time doesn't always make things better. It makes them riskier. Lineaje's research across billions of components reveals a harsh truth:

67.6% of open-source components are not well maintained.

That means most of the code enterprises depend on is aging, decaying, and increasingly dangerous.

Fresh Today. Risky Tomorrow.

Like milk, open-source software has a shelf life. When it's fresh, it's nutritious and reliable. But when it's left out too long-without updates, fixes, or active maintainers—it spoils.

Unmaintained components:

• Accumulate vulnerabilities
• Become incompatible with modern environments
• Introduce unknown and unpatched risks
• Are often forgotten but never removed

The Hidden Risk in Plain Sight

Developers choose open source to move fast. But speed without visibility is a shortcut to risk. You can't protect your applications if you don't know which components are stale, abandoned, or untrustworthy.

What You Can Do

• Start by making trust a requirement-not an assumption.
• Gain full visibility into every component and its maintenance status.
• Prioritize dependencies that are actively maintained.
• Replace stale components with trusted, secure alternatives.
• Automate continuous verification and risk assessment.