Hidden EULA language: Difference between revisions
fixed cite error |
mNo edit summary |
||
| (2 intermediate revisions by 2 users not shown) | |||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
{{Main|End user license agreement}} | {{Main|End-user license agreement}} | ||
'''[[End-user license agreement|End-User License Agreements]]''' are often purposefully obfuscated through legal and technical language to hide terms and permissions that negatively affect the consumer. YouTuber and right-to-repair advocate, | '''[[End-user license agreement|End-User License Agreements]]''' are often purposefully obfuscated through legal and technical language to hide terms and permissions that negatively affect the consumer. YouTuber and right-to-repair advocate, {{Wplink|Louis Rossman}}, coined the term "'''EULA roofie'''" to describe this anti-consumer behavior, equating the hidden language for the purpose of securing an unfavorable agreement to drugging someone (''roofying'') for personal gain. The concept of hidden language within a EULA applies to situations where such terms, if made clear upfront, might cause a customer to second-guess their purchase. | ||
By hiding contentious or unconscionable terms in dense legal documents, manufacturers exploit: | By hiding contentious or unconscionable terms in dense legal documents, manufacturers exploit: | ||
# | #Consumers' lack of proficiency in understanding legal documents. | ||
# | #The impracticality of reading long documents in order to meet one's needs. | ||
==Core | ==Core concept== | ||
Unfavorable language hidden within an end-user license agreement may be understood by three key deceptive practices: | Unfavorable language hidden within an end-user license agreement may be understood by three key deceptive practices: | ||
| Line 26: | Line 26: | ||
===Sony PlayStation Store=== | ===Sony PlayStation Store=== | ||
Sony prominently displays ''"PURCHASE"'' buttons for digital content but buries a | Sony prominently displays ''"PURCHASE"'' buttons for digital content but buries a re-definition of the word "purchase" in Section 10.1 of their Terms of Service:<ref>PLAYSTATION<sup>TM</sup> NETWORK TERMS OF SERVICE AND USER AGREEMENT, December 30th, 2023: https://web.archive.org/web/20231230163548/https://www.playstation.com/en-us/legal/psn-terms-of-service/</ref> | ||
<blockquote>"Use of the terms 'own,' 'ownership', 'purchase,' 'sale,' 'sold,' 'sell,' 'rent' or 'buy'… does not mean or imply any transfer of ownership…"</blockquote> | <blockquote>"Use of the terms 'own,' 'ownership', 'purchase,' 'sale,' 'sold,' 'sell,' 'rent' or 'buy'… does not mean or imply any transfer of ownership…"</blockquote> | ||
| Line 33: | Line 33: | ||
Placing disclaimers such as "We may take away and remove television and movies you bought & paid for at any time, because purchase doesn't mean purchase anymore" next to the "Add to cart" button would understandably negatively affect sales. Therefore, Sony buries this information on page 21 of their Terms of Service. | Placing disclaimers such as "We may take away and remove television and movies you bought & paid for at any time, because purchase doesn't mean purchase anymore" next to the "Add to cart" button would understandably negatively affect sales. Therefore, Sony buries this information on page 21 of their Terms of Service. | ||
===Smart appliance data collection and third-party data sharing=== | |||
LG Electronics (among others) require users to accept extensive terms of service and privacy policies to use the "smart" features on home appliances, such as washing machines. | LG Electronics (among others) require users to accept extensive terms of service and privacy policies to use the "smart" features on home appliances, such as washing machines. | ||
While the "smart" features may have time-saving benefits, the time required to actually read and decipher these documents (often 3+ hours, especially for non-tech-savvy users) negates any time-saving benefits of the smart features themselves. This makes meaningful informed consent impractical. | While the "smart" features may have time-saving benefits, the time required to actually read and decipher these documents (often 3+ hours, especially for non-tech-savvy users) negates any time-saving benefits of the smart features themselves. This makes meaningful informed consent impractical. | ||
A consumer has to read the complete Privacy Policy (see attached images below) to learn that LG collects their personal data and shares it with their advertising partners. | A consumer has to read the complete Privacy Policy (see attached images below) to learn that LG collects their personal data and shares it with their advertising partners. Furthermore, this privacy policy is only shown to the customer once they have bought the LG product. | ||
===Disney's | ===Disney's wrongful death lawsuit=== | ||
In a wrongful-death lawsuit, Jeffrey Piccolo sued Walt Disney Parks & Resorts and Great Irish Pubs Florida, Inc. after his wife, Dr. Kanokporn Tangsuan, died from a severe allergic reaction at Raglan Road Irish Pub in Disney Springs on 5 October 2023. The lawsuit accused the restaurant and Disney of negligence in accommodating her food allergy, which contributed to her death<ref>{{Cite web |last=Piccolo |first=Jeffrey J. |date=2024 | In a wrongful-death lawsuit, Jeffrey Piccolo sued Walt Disney Parks & Resorts and Great Irish Pubs Florida, Inc. after his wife, Dr. Kanokporn Tangsuan, died from a severe allergic reaction at Raglan Road Irish Pub in Disney Springs on 5 October 2023. The lawsuit accused the restaurant and Disney of negligence in accommodating her food allergy, which contributed to her death.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Piccolo |first=Jeffrey J. |date=2 Aug 2024 |title=AUGUST 2ND RESPONSE |url=https://consumerrights.wiki/images/9/9d/AUGUST_2ND_RESPONSE.pdf |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250820191622/https://consumerrights.wiki/images/9/9d/AUGUST_2ND_RESPONSE.pdf |archive-date=20 Aug 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Treisman |first=Rachel |date=14 Aug 2024 |title=Disney backtracks on request to toss wrongful death suit over Disney+ agreement |url=https://www.npr.org/2024/08/14/nx-s1-5074830/disney-wrongful-death-lawsuit-disney |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240821192924/https://www.npr.org/2024/08/14/nx-s1-5074830/disney-wrongful-death-lawsuit-disney |archive-date=21 Aug 2024 |access-date=13 Jul 2025 |website=NPR}}</ref> | ||
In May 2024, Disney attempted to have the case dismissed from court and sent to [[Forced | In May 2024, Disney attempted to have the case dismissed from court and sent to [[Forced arbitration|arbitration]], citing two separate [[End-user license agreement|user agreements]]: | ||
#The [[Disney+]] user agreement Piccolo accepted in 2019 when signing up for a free trial to Disney's streaming service on his [[wikipedia:PlayStation|PlayStation]] | #The [[Disney+]] user agreement Piccolo accepted in 2019 when signing up for a free trial to Disney's streaming service on his [[wikipedia:PlayStation|PlayStation]] | ||
| Line 53: | Line 53: | ||
Disney said that the reason for trying to send the case to arbitration was that the restaurant "is neither owned nor operated by Disney" and that they were defending themselves against inclusion in the lawsuit.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Valinsky |first=Jordan |date=14 Aug 2024 |title=Disney wants wrongful death suit thrown out because widower bought an Epcot ticket and had Disney+ |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2024/08/14/business/disney-plus-wrongful-death-lawsuit/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240815002807/https://edition.cnn.com/2024/08/14/business/disney-plus-wrongful-death-lawsuit/index.html |archive-date=15 Aug 2024 |access-date=13 Jul 2025 |website=CNN}}</ref> | Disney said that the reason for trying to send the case to arbitration was that the restaurant "is neither owned nor operated by Disney" and that they were defending themselves against inclusion in the lawsuit.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Valinsky |first=Jordan |date=14 Aug 2024 |title=Disney wants wrongful death suit thrown out because widower bought an Epcot ticket and had Disney+ |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2024/08/14/business/disney-plus-wrongful-death-lawsuit/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240815002807/https://edition.cnn.com/2024/08/14/business/disney-plus-wrongful-death-lawsuit/index.html |archive-date=15 Aug 2024 |access-date=13 Jul 2025 |website=CNN}}</ref> | ||
==Consumer | ==Consumer impact== | ||
The practice undermines informed consent in digital transactions by: | The practice undermines informed consent in digital transactions by: | ||
| Line 61: | Line 61: | ||
*Presenting one meaning of terms (like "purchase") in the user interface while legally defining them differently in hidden terms. | *Presenting one meaning of terms (like "purchase") in the user interface while legally defining them differently in hidden terms. | ||
==Legal | ==Legal context== | ||
While EULAs and [[Terms of service|Terms of Service]] are legally binding documents, the "EULA roofie" concept challenges their legitimacy by highlighting how they may violate principles of contract law such as: | While EULAs and [[Terms of service|Terms of Service]] are legally binding documents, the "EULA roofie" concept challenges their legitimacy by highlighting how they may violate principles of contract law such as: | ||
| Line 67: | Line 67: | ||
*Good-faith dealing. | *Good-faith dealing. | ||
*Reasonable notice of terms. | *Reasonable notice of terms. | ||
* | *Unconscionable (terms so unfair they shock the conscience). | ||
==Consumer | ==Consumer protection response== | ||
The concept has been used in advocacy for: | The concept has been used in advocacy for: | ||
| Line 81: | Line 81: | ||
==Resources== | ==Resources== | ||
*[https://tosdr.org/en/ TOSDR] — Helps consumers to understand and review terms of service policies | |||
*[https://opentermsarchive.org/en/ Open Terms Archive] — Records changes to terms of service. Helps consumers to understand and review terms of service policies. | |||
*[https://www.pilotlab.org/eulas-of-despair EULA of Despair] — Illustrates the size and complexity of license agreements, with the subsidiary documents they include, for some common services. | |||
==Further reading== | |||
==Further | |||
*[[Game-of-telephone privacy policy]] | *[[Game-of-telephone privacy policy]] | ||
==References== | ==References== | ||
{{Reflist}} | |||
[[Category:Anti-consumer practices]] | [[Category:Anti-consumer practices]] | ||
[[Category:Common license terms]] | [[Category:Common license terms]] | ||