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docs: Add a security policy - #6692

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ntkathole merged 2 commits into
feast-dev:masterfrom
larrysingleton007:docs/security-policy
Aug 6, 2026
Merged

docs: Add a security policy#6692
ntkathole merged 2 commits into
feast-dev:masterfrom
larrysingleton007:docs/security-policy

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@larrysingleton007

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What this PR does / why we need it

Adds a SECURITY.md so the vulnerability reporting path is discoverable.

Private vulnerability reporting is already enabled on this repository and in active use (CVE-2026-55563, published in June, credits an outside reporter). But there is no policy file in the repo root, .github/, docs/, or the org-level feast-dev/.github repo, and neither the README nor the contributing guide mentions security reporting. Without a policy file GitHub only surfaces the option on the Security tab, so a reporter has to already know to look there.

The policy routes to the advisory form, states plainly that vulnerabilities must not go in issues, PRs, or Slack, and notes that fixes land in the latest release, consistent with the versioning policy's best-effort community support and no LTS branch.

This also adds one line to the contributing guide's getting-started step, which currently directs everything to "create a GitHub issue or make a draft PR". That is exactly the advice that misfires for a vulnerability report.

Deliberately omitted: any response-time commitment, triage roster, or contact email. Those are the maintainers' to make rather than mine to assert, and #3684 records a mailing list address that turned out to bounce, so an address seems worth confirming before publishing one. Happy to add any of it if you would like it included.

Which issue(s) this PR fixes

Fixes #6691

The repository has no SECURITY.md in any location, including the
org-level .github repo, and neither the README nor the contributing
guide mentions vulnerability reporting. Private vulnerability reporting
is enabled and in active use, but with no policy file GitHub only
surfaces it on the Security tab, so a reporter has to already know to
look there.

Issue feast-dev#3684 shows the cost: a researcher asked how to disclose
privately in July 2023, was pointed at Slack, and waited seven months
for a contact address which then bounced. Disclosure completed only via
a maintainer's personal email, and the gap itself was never closed.

Adds a policy routing to the advisory form, states plainly that
vulnerabilities must not go in issues, PRs, or Slack, and points the
contributing guide's getting-started step at it, since that step
currently sends everything to an issue or draft PR.

Claims no response-time commitment and lists no email address: the
maintainers can add those if they want them.

Signed-off-by: Larry Singleton <166439969+larrysingleton007@users.noreply.github.com>
@larrysingleton007
larrysingleton007 requested a review from a team as a code owner July 31, 2026 19:58
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codecov-commenter commented Jul 31, 2026

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Codecov Report

✅ All modified and coverable lines are covered by tests.
✅ Project coverage is 46.77%. Comparing base (a1e6fc2) to head (7a54f02).
⚠️ Report is 1 commits behind head on master.
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##           master    #6692   +/-   ##
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  Coverage   46.77%   46.77%           
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@larrysingleton007

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@ntkathole @franciscojavierarceo
Also green since Friday with no reviewer assigned. This adds a SECURITY.md, which the repo currently lacks, so there's no documented private channel for reporting a vulnerability. GitHub surfaces the file directly in the security tab and in the report flow.

Could one of you take a look, or route it? It needs a kind/ label too.

@ntkathole

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@larrysingleton007 Thanks, this looks good, I also think we need to add some guidelines notes on

  1. AI generated reports - no bulk/AI-generated submissions without verification - Reports must demonstrate a clear, reproducible security impact. Bulk or automated submissions - including AI-generated reports that have not been manually verified - may be closed without further response.
  2. Reproducible PoC required - Reinforcing that reports need a PoC or clear reproduction steps, affected version, and actual security impact - not just a scanner output or theoretical concern.
  3. Duplicate reports - Before reporting, please check the published advisories to confirm the issue has not already been addressed.

Adds the three points ntkathole asked for in review: a duplicate check
against published advisories before reporting, explicit report
requirements (affected version, proof of concept or reproduction steps,
actual impact), and a statement that unverified bulk, automated or
AI-generated submissions may be closed without further response.

Folded into the existing reporting section rather than appended as new
sections, since the previous text already asked for reproduction detail
and the advisories link already existed at the bottom. Also notes why raw
scanner output alone is not enough: it does not establish that the issue
is reachable in Feast.

Signed-off-by: Larry Singleton <166439969+larrysingleton007@users.noreply.github.com>
@larrysingleton007

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@ntkathole
Added all three. I folded them into the existing reporting section rather than adding new ones, since the text already asked for reproduction detail and already linked the advisories at the bottom, so separate sections would have said the same thing twice.

The duplicate check now comes first, before the report requirements. Requirements are affected version or commit, a proof of concept or reproduction steps, and actual rather than theoretical impact. The last paragraph covers unverified bulk, automated and AI-generated submissions being closable without further response.

One thing I added beyond your list: a line on why raw scanner or dependency-audit output isn't enough on its own, namely that it doesn't establish the issue is reachable in Feast. That seemed to be the underlying reason for the PoC requirement, and saying it out loud gives maintainers something concrete to point at when closing one. Drop it if you'd rather keep the policy shorter.

@ntkathole
ntkathole merged commit e8edab5 into feast-dev:master Aug 6, 2026
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@larrysingleton007
larrysingleton007 deleted the docs/security-policy branch August 6, 2026 05:20
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No SECURITY.md: private vulnerability reporting is enabled but undiscoverable

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