The Problem of Reverse Engineering Cem Kaner（Cem Kaner逆向工程的问题）.pdf

The Problem of Reverse Engineering A common criticism of software publishers is that their EULAs prohibit reverse engineering, decompilation, and disassembly of their software. Software publishers typically restrict these activities because they risk exposing, and hence losing, to the public domain, the publishers crown jewel-the secrets contained in the softwares source code. Most purchasers of off-the-shelf software, however, care little, if at all, about the right to reverse engineer, and they certainly are not interested in paying more money to acquire this right. The entities that are most interested in acquiring this right are competitors of the software developer. A competitor should not be permitted to acquire the right to examine a companys trade secrets for the low price that the typical end user pays for the software. (CK -- Footnotes omitted. Also, a EULA is an end user license agreement, typically typically shrink-wrapped and presented to the customer after the sale.) Robert W. Gomulkiewicz (a senior corporate attorney at Microsoft) and Mary L. Williamson (1996) Many people misunderstand the nature of reverse engineering. Those misunderstandings shape corporate policies and legislation. As Ive spoken to working software developers (especially and including testers) about Article 2B, Ive been surprised to discover that we are as likely to misunderstand the breadth and importance of reverse engineering as the lawyers. (Article 2B is a 273proposed revision to the Uniform Commercial Code that will govern all software-related contracts. For more information, see my website, , or my new book, Bad Software, which has a detailed appendix on 2B). Originally, I presented material on reverse engineering at a conference