Does UCITA prevent reverse engineering?
No. Some say that UCITA limits reverse engineering. Contracts may or may not be able to do so, but UCITA does not alter that existing law. This issue precedes UCITA: reverse engineering of software has been debated internationally and among national governments for years. Reverse engineering is a trade secret law concept that allows a buyer to discover and use any secrets contained in a product that it buys. UCITA expressly provides that it does not displace trade secret law. The rules remain the same. Also, reverse engineering of a copyrighted work is governed by federal law, which is not changed by UCITA. Further, the Section 105 comments make a specific reference to a 1999 amendment to the Copyright Act on this subject at the request of the Digital Futures Coalition and ACIS. These groups now request more: a statutory rule that was rejected by Congress. State law cannot solve this intellectual property law issue which has been fought not only in Congress, but also internationally. •
