Steve Dent / Engadget:
Updated DMCA exemptions provide legal cover to Americans who reverse engineer products or repair their own electronics, but are limited to a two-year trial run
Researchers can now probe connected devices, computers and cars for security vulnerabilities without risking a lawsuit. Last Friday, the FTC authorized changes to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) that will allow Americans to do hack their own electronic devices. Researchers can lawfully reverse engineer products and consumers can repair their vehicle’s electronics, but the FTC is only allowing the exemptions for a two-year trial run.
The FTC and US Library of Congress enacted similar legislation in 2014 that allows you to unlock your own smartphone. Until today, however, it was illegal to mess with the programs in your car, thermostat or tractor, thanks to strict provisions in the DMCA’s Section 1201. That applied even to researchers probing the device security for flaws, a service that helps both the public and manufacturers. For example, researchers commandeered a Jeep on the road to show it could be done, an act that was technically illegal.
You could have also been sued just for trying to repair your own electronics.
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1 Comment
Tomi Engdahl says:
Steve Dent / Engadget:
Updated DMCA exemptions provide legal cover to Americans who reverse engineer products or repair their own electronics, but are limited to a two-year trial run
You can now legally hack your own car or smart TV
The FTC’s “security research exemption” to the DMCA has kicked in.
https://www.engadget.com/2016/11/01/dmca-security-hacking-exemptions/
Researchers can now probe connected devices, computers and cars for security vulnerabilities without risking a lawsuit. Last Friday, the FTC authorized changes to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) that will allow Americans to do hack their own electronic devices. Researchers can lawfully reverse engineer products and consumers can repair their vehicle’s electronics, but the FTC is only allowing the exemptions for a two-year trial run.
The FTC and US Library of Congress enacted similar legislation in 2014 that allows you to unlock your own smartphone. Until today, however, it was illegal to mess with the programs in your car, thermostat or tractor, thanks to strict provisions in the DMCA’s Section 1201. That applied even to researchers probing the device security for flaws, a service that helps both the public and manufacturers. For example, researchers commandeered a Jeep on the road to show it could be done, an act that was technically illegal.
You could have also been sued just for trying to repair your own electronics.