From: Jason Weisberger <jweis@primenet.com>
Date: Wed, 26 Jul 95 14:11:57 PDT
To: rross@sci.dixie.edu (Russell Ross)
Subject: Re: RC4
In-Reply-To: <v01520d05ac3c5174f88c@[144.38.16.209]>
Message-ID: <199507262111.OAA14809@usr2.primenet.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text


> >The RC4 algorithm is copyrighted by and intellectual property of RSA Data
> >Security.  For use of this algorithm in a product or service you plan to
> >sell, you may use the RC4 software implementation from our BSAFE toolkit.
> >Licenses are not available for other commercial software implementations of
> >this algorithm other than what is included in our BSAFE toolkit.
> 
> I wasn't aware that you could copyright an algorithm.  Patent, yes, but not
> copyright.  Intellectual property meens secret, right?  Aren't there any
> precendence cases involving propriety schemes that are reverse engineered?
> I know there have been, I just can't remember what they are.  In any case,
> RSADSI is likely to sue anyone who attempts to use the RC4 code openly, and
> even if they lose there are considerable legal fees involved for whoever
> tries it.  What if a bunch of people put secure HTTPd servers online at the
> same time, without any clear trail pointing to the first one?  If the RC4
> code really is legal to use, this would make it hard for RSADSI to pinpoint
> anyone to sue, thus eliminating the intimidation factor.

RSA wants money (this comes from speaking with an RSA sales guy - Dave 
Garifolio, who incidentially sends out really neat RSA folders full of 
info you can take out of the folder and put elsewhere leaving you a cool 
folder) for the toolkit, thats all.  They send you to some sister corp of 
theirs and then charge you for the license.  Dave tells me there might be 
a chance you could buy one kit from RSA, design the server and anyone who 
wanted to use it could pay something like a $300.00 fee to lic. the thing.

However, in the aformentioned folder, Dave sent me all kinds of "we want 
big cash" paperwork, which I have yet to read (as anything you've gotta 
put in a really cool folder to get me to read can't be worth the time out 
from sleeping.)


> 
> By the way, since RSA is such a vocal opponent of the Clipper chip on the
> grounds of its secret Skipjack algorithm, why does it market secret
> algorithms like RC4 and RC2?  Does this seen like a double face to anyone
> else?
> 

Uh, yeah.

Jason Weisberger
jweis@primenet.com 
http://198.147.97.19/~jweis