Russia wants to legalize illegal Western software piracy
The Russian offensive in Ukraine continues again and again and no sign of a peaceful end to the conflict is palpable so far. The incessant bombardments of the Russian army on Ukrainian civilian buildings even seem to greatly minimize the chances of this in the short term. If no one in the West wants to start World War III by attacking Russia, it is nonetheless thea target of economic sanctions which strongly disrupt its economy. McDonald’s, Starbucks, Google, Apple, Nike, Amazon, for example, have ceased their activities in Putin’s country. Sony also ended the sale of its PlayStation products there, even blocking access to its PlayStation Store. The Russian government is therefore preparing a response to the response.
Cloud software
This is indeed what Kyle Mitchell, a lawyer specializing in new technologies, revealed. He draws his conclusion from the translation of an article published in the Russian daily Kommersant. Quoting an anonymous source, the newspaper announces that the Kremlin would consider authorizing the use of Western software without possessing the official license. It must be said that the largest companies in the sector have closed its use, as recalled in the article:
Such a measure could temporarily mitigate the consequences following the departure of Microsoft, IBM, Oracle and others from Russia, experts say.
The Russian authorities would therefore urgently prepare measures which would allow the suspension of criminal and administrative proceedings against users of pirated versions of software from countries supporting the sanctions against the country. The problem here is that many software now work as a service (SaaS) and it is impossible to run them without having access to the publishers’ servers. However, we can always trust the virtuoso Muscovite pirates who, if we leave them the field free, will find a way to circumvent the obstacle.
FYI: Russia is considering legalizing software piracy, in response to Western sanctions imposed over its invasion of Ukrainehttps://t.co/qW4kANYf06
— The Register (@TheRegister) March 8, 2022
If this announcement may surprise Westerners, it is ultimately not so extraordinary when we know the largesse of Russian law on the subject of intellectual property.
The law is me!
Everything is indeed written black on white in article 1360 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. As you may have forgotten, we remind you. In case of emergency, the government has the right to take action on the use of inventions, useful models and industrial designs without the consent of patent holders. Basically, you just have to use it and do what you want with copyright. Which is even more attractive when you know that you do not incur any legal proceedings by doing so. In its time the Soviet Union had already used this type of process to counterfeit certain computer chips which were inaccessible, but essential.
The United States is reportedly considering blocking semiconductor exports to Russia. For the record, Russia embarked on the design of its own processors (we talked about it here) and the USSR was not afraid of making counterfeits https://t.co/53VdiCbufj
— Le Virus Info & Pirates Mag’ & Les Puces Info (@ACBM_COM) February 23, 2022
Moreover, and this could have serious consequences in this crisis, Vladimir Putin last week approved a plan that could almost turn Western sanctions into bargains. This would allow the government to seek court orders to nationalize the management of abandoned factories. Thus, for ” prevent bankruptcy and preserve jobs “, nothing could prevent an official from getting their hands on an Amazon warehouse and continuing to exploit what it contains.
We almost have the impression of witnessing on the Russian side a game of ” Laughs best who laughs last “. From ours, we don’t want to laugh, nor the obscenity to look at the situation from any playful angle.
