“I have created a computer virus and released it over the Internet. It is named “EULAVirus” version 1.0.
“The virus takes the following actions, besides replicating
itself. It seeds a pseudorandom number generator with a number
based upon the machine's unique characteristics, such that the PRNG
sequence will always be the same for the same machine. Then,
during a dialog box, wizard, browser window, or other interactive
session (“dialog”) when certain key words and / or pixel combinations
are detected, it takes a “fingerprint” of the dialog based upon certain
characteristics, and uses the PRNG to determine whether to act on that
dialog. The manner in which this is done ensures that for a given
dialog on a given machine, the same action will always be taken.
If a dialog box is acted upon, the virus will cause all text to be
scrolled through, and an approval button to be “clicked” (it does so by
interacting with the operating system at a lower level). This all
takes places nearly instantly, so that any human watching the computer
perform this will be unable to perceive what has occurred, beyond
perhaps a brief flash of the dialog on a slow computer.
“I have deleted all traces of the virus and any of its documentation
from all computers I control, but not before propagating it out to the
Internet. It is spreading rapidly but it is exceedingly stealthy,
and it is engineered to avoid detection at all costs. In order to
prevent its detection, I will not say which operating systems it runs
on, nor will I identify specific vectors of transmission.”
Now: can a EULA (end-user license agreement) ever again be considered legally binding?