Digital Millennium Copyright Act

Is reverse engineering legal?

Reverse engineering for the purpose of achieving interoperability of systems is often protected as fair use or by the DMCA. Also, discovering a trade secret by fair and honest means does not violate trade secret law. If reverse engineering is accomplished through the use of theft, bribery, misrepresentation, breach or inducement of a breach of

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What are the DMCA’s anti-circumvention provisions?

The DMCA prohibits circumventing technological protection measures used by copyright owners to control access to their works. Bypassing a password system to gain unauthorized access to copyright-protected material or services (e.g., a streaming service) is an example. The DMCA also prohibits making, importing, offering, providing or trafficking in circumvention technologies, products, services, or components. The DMCA provides

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Could linking to infringing content get me into trouble?

Yes, linking to infringing content could put you at risk of contributory liability for facilitating infringement, but if a website owner or other online service provider complies with DMCA requirements, it provides a safe harbor from contributory liability for facilitating access to infringing content. To qualify for this safe harbor, the website owner or other

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What are the most effective ways to avoid copyright infringement liability?

The best way to avoid copyright infringement liability is to focus on creating original work rather than copying other people’s works. If a decision is made to use another person’s work, the most effective way to avoid infringement liability is to secure written permission from the copyright owner. In terms of secondary liability, compliance with

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