Is it legal to HACK your own car?

Attorney Steve® Copyright Law Essentials - Vehicle Software - DMCA 1201 Exemption

In this episode of Vondran Legal Hour Attorney Steve® discusses the new guideline issued by the Library of Congress (United States Copyright Office) which provides a limited exemption to have the software in your car, truck, tractor or other vehicle that has software to control things like:

1. Steering assist
2. Braking assist
3. Doors
4. Windows
5. Horns
6. Navigation system
7. Media & Entertainment system

Many people don't know that when you "buy" a vehicle you may only be "licensing" the software inside that vehicle.   Companies like GM and John Deer would prefer you NOT tinker with your own car and bring it in to an authorized repair shop (as opposed to try to hack into your software, circumventing access controls - section 1201 prohibits), but the Copyright Office now allows for a limited "fair use" type exemption for accessing your vehicle software for "good faith security research".  What this phrase means will likely have to mature with case law.

We hope you enjoy this content from our copyright podcast collection.

If you need help with a DMCA or Copyright issue (including software disputes), we can be found on the web at AttorneySteve.com   Make sure to check our our YouTube channel, we are closing in on 30k subscribers - great stuff at AttorneySteveVideos.com