Fresh Diebold Leaks, Keeping their software secret

[the ether]

Fresh Diebold Leaks, Keeping their software secret

Diebold Contracts with Georgia
leaked to Bev Harris

Full scoop at www.blackboxvoting.org

Here are some tips regarding what's in the contracts with Diebold in Georgia and Alameda County, California.



Diebold:

County shall not modify, translate, disassemble, decompile, reverse engineer or create derivative works based upon, or perform any other similar process on the System or any portion thereof.

Analysis:
Restricts the County from being able to obtain the source code for the software or otherwise reverse engineer any of the system and thus be capable of providing more information to any third party.





Diebold:

If the County receives a request pursuant to the Public Records Act that the County believes will require it to produce documents that Contractor (Diebold) has designated as confidential, the County will notify Contractor of the request. If Contractor requests that the County not produce the requested material, Contractor shall defend and indemnify the county from all costs and liability arising from the request, including attorney's fees.

This applies to documentation, source code, system pricing information, hardware, hardware and software service documentation, other information that is in a tangible form and marked confidential.


Analysis:

What they are doing with this provision is extending the trade secret disclosure rules. In this contract, Exhibits E and F define trade secrets to include any items designated as "confidential information." Exhibits E and F suggest that the County cannot release information at all unless ordered by a court or authorized by Diebold.

But OK, now, this also is pretty broad and when Diebold indemnifies the County for "all costs and liabilities arising from" records requests, sounds to me like Diebold is going to have to assume all costs to opposing release. Apparently, any public records request denied by Alameda County, if we fight it, will cost Diebold, not the taxpayer.


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