New Method To Detect and Prove GPL Violations

qwerty writes "A paper to be presented at the upcoming academic conference Automated Software Engineering describes a new method to detect code theft and could be used to detect GPL violations in particular. While the co-called birthmarking method is demonstrated for Java, it is general enough to work for other languages as well. The API Benchmark observes the interaction between an application and (dynamic) libraries that are part of the runtime system. This captures the observable behavior of the program and cannot be easily foiled using code obfuscation techniques, as shown in the paper (PDF). Once such a birthmark is captured, it can be searched for in other programs. By capturing the birthmarks from popular open-source frameworks, GPL-violating applications could be identified."

Comments

Re:new use of old trick

[mark-t]

How did you know they were cheating and didn't derive their similar approaches from a common origin (presumably material that was presented in class or else from the textbook)? My experience with marking for a computer science professor showed that about 80% of the students approached any given programming assignment almost exactly the same way in terms of their final implementation... their common origin being something the teacher described during a lecture.

Re:No, really

[The Bungi]

That won't do. The GPL is really more of a social instrument than a software license, so for people like Stallman a BSD-style license (which is just one step above public domain and true freedom) would be unacceptable. A lot of bandwidth and keyboard lubricant has been spent over the years to ensure that everyone thinks the GPL is the "best" software license - and the thousands of developers that buy into the FSF "freedom, with caveats" spiel by using the GPL (because well, that's what everyone uses) without really understanding what it's for are part of that problem.

As you can imagine I really don't like the GPL or the FSF or Richard Stallman or any of his friends too much. While I recognize their contributions I think that they've fallen into the trap of trying to force everyone to convert to what has become a quasi-religion where the Inquisition is more important than celebrating mass.

Re:No, really

[Daishiman]

You know, I'm absolutely tired of the BSD trolls that claim that the BSD license is "freer", not because I have a beef with the BSD, simply because your definition of "freedom" is ludicrous.

There are no absolute freedoms. Freedom to infringe on other's rights or freedoms gives more freedom to yourself, but limits it to other members of society. So long as there are things that cannot be owned or achieved communaly without side effects to others, freedoms have a limit, that is the actions that you cannot do so that others can do them.

The GPL definition of freedom is that a sofware and derivatives must always, under all conditions, be free. Yes, it a restriction to the developer who would wish to close up his source and use a GPLed piece of code, but it is an additional freedom to all the users who now have access to this source, which would have otherwise been denied.

Analogy time: the King is free to treat his peasants as dogs if he wished and if he has sufficient power to repress any opinions the peasants would have about that. The peasants, however, are limited by the freedoms the king has. Therefore the balance of freedoms for a more equal society would be that the king's freedoms be limited in order to allow the peasants to live their life.

So as you said, the GPL is also a social instrument, but it is no less free than the BSD; it simply distributes freedoms in a different matter. If you have a problem with that, use whichever license you wish to use. But don't go around accusing the GPL is limiting freedoms when it gives others freedoms that the BSD could never guarantee.