Legal and Economic Justifi cation for Software Protection

2011 ◽  
pp. 328-339
Author(s):  
Bruno de Vuyst
Keyword(s):  
Reverse Engineering ◽  
Open Source ◽  
Open Source Software ◽  
Copyright Protection ◽  
Patent Protection ◽  
Computer Programs ◽  
Property Law ◽  
Software Protection ◽  
National Patent ◽  
The U.S

This chapter discusses legal and economic rationale in regards to open source software protection. Software programs are, under TRIPS1, protected by copyright (reference is made to the Berne Convention2). The issue with this protection is that, due to the dichotomy idea/expression that is typical for copyright protection, reverse engineering of software is not excluded, and copyright is hence found to be an insufficient protection. Hence, in the U.S., software makers have increasingly turned to patent protection. In Europe, there is an exclusion of computer programs in Article 52 (2) c) EPC (EPO, 1973), but this exclusion is increasingly narrowed and some call for abandoning the exclusion altogether. A proposal by the European Commission, made in 2002, called for a directive to allow national patent authorities to patent software in a broader way, so as to ensure further against reverse engineering; this proposal, however, was shelved in 2005 over active opposition within and outside the European parliament. In summary, open source software does not fit in any proprietary model; rather, it creates a freedom to operate. Ultimately, there is a need to rethink approaches to property law so as to allow for viable software packaging in both models.

Legal and Economic Justification for Software Protection

2009 ◽  
pp. 2831-2842
Author(s):  
Bruno de Vuyst ◽  
Alea Fairchild
Keyword(s):  
Reverse Engineering ◽  
Open Source ◽  
Open Source Software ◽  
Copyright Protection ◽  
Patent Protection ◽  
Computer Programs ◽  
Property Law ◽  
Software Protection ◽  
National Patent ◽  
The U.S

This chapter discusses legal and economic rationale in regards to open source software protection. Software programs are, under TRIPS1, protected by copyright (reference is made to the Berne Convention2). The issue with this protection is that, due to the dichotomy idea/expression that is typical for copyright protection, reverse engineering of software is not excluded, and copyright is hence found to be an insufficient protection. Hence, in the U.S., software makers have increasingly turned to patent protection. In Europe, there is an exclusion of computer programs in Article 52 (2) c) EPC (EPO, 1973), but this exclusion is increasingly narrowed and some call for abandoning the exclusion altogether. A proposal by the European Commission, made in 2002, called for a directive to allow national patent authorities to patent software in a broader way, so as to ensure further against reverse engineering; this proposal, however, was shelved in 2005 over active opposition within and outside the European parliament. In summary, open source software does not fit in any proprietary model; rather, it creates a freedom to operate. Ultimately, there is a need to rethink approaches to property law so as to allow for viable software packaging in both models.

Legal and Economic Justification for Software Protection

2012 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Bruno de Vuyst ◽  
Alea Fairchild
Keyword(s):  
Reverse Engineering ◽  
Open Source ◽  
Open Source Software ◽  
Patent Protection ◽  
Software Protection ◽  
Economic Justification ◽  
Economic Rationale ◽  
National Patent ◽  
The U.S ◽  
Made In

This article discusses legal and economic rationale in regards to open source software protection. Software programs are, under TRIPS1, protected by copyright (reference is made to the Berne Convention2). The issue with this protection is that, due to the dichotomy idea/expression that is typical for copyright protection, reverse engineering of software is not excluded, and copyright is hence found to be an insufficient protection. Hence, in the U.S., software makers have increasingly turned to patent protection. In Europe, there is an exclusion of computer programs in Article 52 (2) c) EPC (EPO, 1973), but this exclusion is increasingly narrowed and some call for abandoning the exclusion altogether. A proposal by the European Commission, made in 2002, called for a directive to allow national patent authorities to patent software in a broader way, so as to ensure further against reverse engineering; this proposal, however, was shelved in 2005 over active opposition within and outside the European parliament. In summary, open source software does not fit in any proprietary model; rather, it creates a freedom to operate. Ultimately, there is a need to rethink approaches to property law so as to allow for viable software packaging in both models.

scholarly journals Use of Free and Open-Source Software (FOSS) in the U.S. Department of Defense

2003 ◽  
Vol 2003 (01) ◽  
pp. 0102
Author(s):  
Terry Bollinger
Keyword(s):  
Software Development ◽  
Open Source ◽  
Open Source Software ◽  
Department Of Defense ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Source Code ◽  
Leading Edge ◽  
Cyber Attacks ◽  
Software Analysis ◽  
The U.S

This report documents the results of a study by The MITRE Corporation on the use of free and open-source software (FOSS) in the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). FOSS gives users the right to run, copy, distribute, study, change, and improve it as they see fit, without asking permission or making fiscal payments to any external group or person. The study showed that FOSS provides substantial benefits to DoD security, infrastructure support, software development, and research. Given the openness of its source code, the finding that FOSS profoundly benefits security was both counterintuitive and instructive. Banning FOSS in DoD would remove access to exceptionally well-verified infrastructure components such as OpenBSD and robust network and software analysis tools needed to detect and respond to cyber-attacks. Finally, losing the hands-on source code accessibility of FOSS source code would reduce DoD’s ability to respond rapidly to cyberattacks. In short, banning FOSS would have immediate, broad, and strongly negative impacts on the DoD’s ability to defend the U.S. against cyberattacks. For infrastructure support, the deep historical ties between FOSS and the emergence of the Internet mean that removing FOSS applications would strongly negatively impact the DoD’s ability to support web and Internet-based applications. Software development would be hit especially hard due to many leading-edge and broadly used tools being FOSS. Finally, the loss of access to low-cost data processing tools and the inability to share results in the more potent form of executable FOSS software would seriously and negatively impact nearly all forms of scientific and data-driven research.

scholarly journals The Reference to ‘A Work or Software’ as the Factor Determining the Scope of the European Union Public Licence (EUPL) v. 1.2

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 175-196
Author(s):  
Krzysztof Żok
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Intellectual Property ◽  
Computer Program ◽  
European Commission ◽  
Open Source ◽  
Open Source Software ◽  
Property Law ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Intellectual Property Law ◽  
The Relationship

Free and open source software (FOSS) has undoubtedly become an important element of intellectual property law. It is therefore not surprising that the European Commission developed its own non-proprietary licence, i.e. the European Union Public Licence (EUPL). The article examines the reference to ‘a work of software’ to determine the scope of the licence. For this purpose, the paper discusses the reasons for the creation of the EUPL, the relationship between a work and software as well as the structure of a computer program. The following considerations also include the compatible licences listed in the EUPL Appendix. The article concludes that the reference to a work or software is not accidental because it removes serious doubts arising from the concept of a computer program. Thus, this legal solution may facilitate the wider adoption of the licence.

scholarly journals Perlindungan Hak Cipta Dalam Pelanggaran Hak Cipta Logo Cap Jempol

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
desi ratnasari
Keyword(s):  
Reverse Engineering ◽  
Open Source ◽  
Open Source Software ◽  
Mass Market

komputer teknologi merupakan persyaratan penting untuk mengakses dan menggunakan informasi, mempercepat transfer teknologi dan mendorong pertumbuhan produktivitas. Pada saat yang sama waktu, komputer produk perangkat lunak yang mungkin yang paling berat dilindungi dari semua bentuk berbasis pengetahuan produk. Berdasarkan Perjanjian TRIPS, program komputer sekarang memenuhi syarat untuk perlindungan hak cipta sama seperti setiap karya sastra lain, serta untuk bentuk lain perlindungan IP, termasuk dengan paten di beberapa negara, seperti Amerika Serikat. Mengembangkan negara, tentu saja, memiliki berbagai persyaratan untuk aplikasi perangkat lunak komputer di mereka industri, rumah sakit, sekolah dan kantor pemerintah.,dengan Microsoft sebagai pemain utama, mendominasi pasar global untuk produk ini. Perangkat lunak industri negara-negara berkembang, bahkan di India, adalah kebanyakan absen dari program komputer dikemas sector. 20 Hak cipta yang paling penting dalam industri perangkat lunak komputer ke rak-off- aplikasi bisnis sektor. Tidak seperti aplikasi perangkat lunak dipesan lebih dahulu, produk ini memiliki mass market dan dapat dengan mudah disalin. Perlindungan hak cipta memungkinkan perusahaan untuk mencegah menyalin,persaingan batas dan harga biaya monopoli untuk produk ini. Hal ini juga mungkin membatasi persaingan dalam pengembangan aplikasi antar-operasi,melalui tindak pada inovasi oleh reverse engineering. Dalam TRIPS, negara-negara berkembang diperbolehkan fleksibilitas untuk memungkinkan reverse engineering perangkat lunak,sehingga masalah ini dapat dihindari jika nasional undang-undang hak cipta yang dirancang tepat. Sebagai ukuran lain praktis, lebih luas penggunaan berbagai open source software produk,di mana kode sumber tersedia tidak seperti perangkat lunak berpemilik,dapat diterima atau beberapa di industri berpendapat bahwa dengan penegakan hak cipta lebih kuat,sumber tertutup karena pengembang proprietary mungkin lebih bersedia untuk membuat kode sumber tersedia untuk pengembang perangkat lunak dalam mengembangkan negara. Pada saat ini sebagian besar negara memiliki perangkat lunak dan program komputer yang dilindungi hak cipta.Kata Kunci : Hak Cipta dan Perlindungan.

Copyright in Cyberspace

2020 ◽  
pp. 191-218
Author(s):  
Mireille Hildebrandt
Keyword(s):  
Open Source ◽  
Copyright Protection ◽  
Computer Programs ◽  
Copyright Law ◽  
Free Access ◽  
Constitutional Democracy ◽  
Computer Scientists ◽  
Software Copyright ◽  
Eu Copyright Law ◽  
Ip Law

This chapter is an introduction to the domain of intellectual property (IP) rights, notably copyright. For computer scientists, the most relevant part of copyright law concerns copyright on computer programs, or software. Copyright on software is the enabling precondition for the General Public Licence (GPL) and the open source initiative. Before discussing copyright on software, however, this chapter first investigates the position of IP law in the context of constitutional democracy and clarifies that IP law is private law. From there, the chapter provides an overview of the various types of IP that are most relevant, after which it turns to the history, objectives, and scope of copyright protection. Finally, this chapter discusses EU copyright law and the issues of open source and free access.

Intellectual property

Geophysics ◽  
1995 ◽  
Vol 60 (4) ◽  
pp. 1270-1278
Author(s):  
K. P. Sriram ◽  
Mark Gilbreth
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual Property ◽  
Copyright Protection ◽  
Patent Protection ◽  
Computer Software ◽  
Computer Programs ◽  
Related Issue ◽  
Copyright Laws ◽  
Basic Understanding

In our last two articles, we discussed various aspects of patents, This article discussed the related issue of copyrights: requirements for obtaining them, infringement, and remedies. The purpose of this article is to provide a basic understanding of the nature of copyright protection and then discuss the availability of patent and copyright protection, it is less clear on the general availability of patent protection fir computer programs. This is a very contentious matter. There are some who advocate strengthening of protection for computer software while there are others who would like to see computer software shorn of any protection under both the patent and the copyright laws.

scholarly journals PERLINDUNGAN PATEN PADA APLIKASI SMARTPHONE

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
putri indah sari
Keyword(s):  
Reverse Engineering ◽  
Open Source ◽  
Open Source Software

Pada saat yang sama waktu, komputer produk perangkat lunak yang mungkin yang paling berat dilindungi dari semua bentuk berbasis pengetahuan produk. Masalah kedua adalah dimana kode sumber dari perangkat lunak ini juga dilindungi, ini dapat membuat lebih sulit untuk mengadaptasi produk untuk kebutuhan lokal. Hal ini juga mungkin membatasi persaingan dalam pengembangan aplikasi antar-operasi,melalui tindak pada inovasi oleh reverse engineering. Dalam TRIPS, negara-negara berkembang diperbolehkan fleksibilitas untuk memungkinkan reverse engineering perangkat lunak,sehingga masalah ini dapat dihindari jika nasional undang-undang hak cipta yang dirancang tepat. Sebagai ukuran lain praktis, lebih luas penggunaan berbagai open source software produk,di mana kode sumber tersedia tidak seperti perangkat lunak berpemilik,dapat diterima atau beberapa di industri berpendapat bahwa dengan penegakan hak cipta lebih kuat,sumber tertutup karena pengembang proprietary mungkin lebih bersedia untuk membuat kode sumber tersedia untuk pengembang perangkat lunak dalam mengembangkan negara. Hal ini jelas di luar mandat kami untuk merekomendasikan jenis kebijakan pengembangan negara harus diikuti untuk pengadaan perangkat lunak komputer.pengembang aplikasi harus mengetahui bagaimana peraturan sebuah karya cipta bisa dilindungi. Hal ini cukup penting menurut saya, karena di era internet ini pembajakan bisa saja menimpa kita. Mungkin yang lebih parah kalau sudah berurusan dengan hukum karena kita sembarangan menggunakan karya milik orang lain tanpa izin. Hal ini berlaku pula untuk sebaliknya, tentu tidak enak apabila pelanggaran Hak Cipta malah menimpa pengembang aplikasi. Misalnya: aplikasi yang telah dibuat dengan menghabiskan banyak energi malah beberapa hari kemudian sudah terbit bajakannya dengan komponen aplikasi yang sama persis, bahkan mungkin jumlah download-nya lebih besar dari aplikasi milik pengembang aplikasi aslinya.Kata Kunci : Perlindungan Aplikasi,Hak Paten Produk.

A Novel Software Protection Approach for Code Obfuscation to Enhance Software Security

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 34-47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pratiksha Gautam ◽  
Hemraj Saini
Keyword(s):  
Reverse Engineering ◽  
Open Source ◽  
Program Text ◽  
Software Protection ◽  
Code Transformation ◽  
Software Developers ◽  
Code Obfuscation ◽  
Software Codes ◽  
Illegal Copying ◽  
Software Watermarking

Over the past few decades ago, software developers analyzed robustly several forms of software protection against illegal copying or piracy. With the expansion in digital technology, the risk of illegal copying of software also amplifies. The increasing piracy rate has posed a serious threat to software developers leading to the development of various software protection techniques. However, various techniques have been proposed for copyright protection such as software watermarking, obfuscation, tamper-proofing and diversity. The code transformation (obfuscation) is a method of transforming a program into a form which is more complicated for an adversary to understand or change the original code from an illegitimate process of reverse engineering. None of the current code obfuscation approaches provide resistance from reverse engineering attacks. The reverse engineering threat occurs due to the unconfined software code to the user. Malicious reverse engineering of software codes can be harder by exertion of code transformation on software programs. To address this, we acquaint a peculiar code transformation approach for software protection. The proposed approach is used semantically equivalent to code clone within the source code to protect logical part of program text. We have successfully implement our approach using open source java project Gantt project system and open source java obfuscator's tools. In this paper, we present our approach and demonstrate it with an illustration. The intent of this method is to prevent static analysis attack and make dynamic attack compact for an adversary. This makes it worthwhile against reverse engineering attacks.

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