Page 277 - (ISC)² CISSP Certified Information Systems Security Professional Official Study Guide

Shrink-wrap license agreements are written on the outside of the
software packaging. They commonly include a clause stating that

you acknowledge agreement to the terms of the contract simply by
breaking the shrink-wrap seal on the package.

Click-through license agreements are becoming more
commonplace than shrink-wrap agreements. In this type of
agreement, the contract terms are either written on the software
box or included in the software documentation. During the

installation process, you are required to click a button indicating
that you have read the terms of the agreement and agree to abide
by them. This adds an active consent to the process, ensuring that
the individual is aware of the agreement’s existence prior to
installation.

Cloud services license agreements take click-through agreements
to the extreme. Most cloud services do not require any form of

written agreement and simply flash legal terms on the screen for
review. In some cases, they may simply provide a link to legal
terms and a check box for users to confirm that they read and agree
to the terms. Most users, in their excitement to access a new
service, simply click their way through the agreement without
reading it and may unwittingly bind their entire organization to
onerous terms and conditions.

Industry groups provide guidance and enforcement

activities regarding software licensing. You can get more

information from their websites. One major group is the Software
Alliance at www.bsa.org.

Import/Export

The federal government recognizes that the very same computers and
encryption technologies that drive the internet and e-commerce can be
extremely powerful tools in the hands of a military force. For this