License violation: GoldBug

[Werner Koch]

On Sat, 27 Jul 2013 12:45, rdohm321 at gmail.com said:

> We all need to evaluate this and will come back to you
> In case there is a file or txt missing, this have to be corrected.

I have not checked the claim that GoldBug is distributed under a BSD
license.  Regardless of what license you use you need to comply with the
terms of the LGPL because you use Libgcrypt:

  right development, the open-source project "GoldBug" has chosen the
  crypto-library "Lib-Spot-On v. 0.1" (based on libGcrypt).
                                                        [from the PR]

> But personally I would give you the tip, as you said this is not the right
> list to discuss this and you yourself are mostly posting about it, that you

gnupg-users has always been used for discussion on all kind of crypto
topics.  Thus is a suitable list.

> be a Matador of a shitstorm. Help People, and dont  drop them down.

Pointing out severe problems of the software is helping that project and
the people.  Yesm it is a severe problem to not comply with the license
conditions.  For example GPLv2 and LGPLv2.1 have a termination clause

    8. You may not copy, modify, sublicense, link with, or distribute
  the Library except as expressly provided under this License.  Any
  attempt otherwise to copy, modify, sublicense, link with, or
  distribute the Library is void, and will automatically terminate your
  rights under this License.  However, parties who have received copies,
  or rights, from you under this License will not have their licenses
  terminated so long as such parties remain in full compliance.

Thus legally you are not anymore allowed to distributed any code based
on Libgcrypt.  In this case hwoever, I (in my role as principal author
and maintainer of Libgcrypt) will consider this an inadvertent case
which shall not have any legal consequences.  Just fix the problem and
everything is fine.

Libgcrypt is kept under the LGPLv2.1+ so that it may easily be used by
all kind of software.  I merely expect that users adhere to the license
terms.  With shard libraries/DLLs it is actually pretty easy to comply
with the LGPL conditions.



Salam-Shalom,

   Werner


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