Did you know that in the US, it’s illegal to tinker with the code in your in-car computer? Thanks to the nuances and Stateside applications of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), you’re not even supposed to inspect the inner workings of your vehicle’s circuitry. This is absurd, which is why the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is fighting for a better policy.
The EFF is currently entrenched in a legal battle to challenge DMCA overreach. In a new blog post — colorfully titled “Automakers Say You Don’t Really Own Your Car” — the digital rights advocates share some of the absurdity that many vehicle manufacturers are slinging to justify the DMCA’s applications to in-car computers. This is the best:
John Deere even argued that letting people modify car computer systems will result in them pirating music through the on-board entertainment system, which would be one of the more convoluted ways to copy media (and the exemption process doesn’t authorise copyright infringement, anyway).
Yes, Repair it when it breaks down, even! And yes, you should be able to do whatever you want with your car’s computer — within reason. [EFF]
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