Megan Brame

Stories By Megan Brame

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  Apps

  Apps By Megan Brame

  Why You Need a Lawyer When Developing An App

  For the majority of you reading this, chances are you're not far from your smartphone. They've become a quintessential part of our daily lives and have integrated into navigating everything from banking to meal tracking. For aspiring developers, building an app can be a way into financial security, or even springboarding into other opportunities with both start-ups and large corporations that are interested in making their services easily accessible to their consumer base. But it's not all sunshine and puppies for developing your first app, especially when it comes to protecting yourself, your intellectual property, and your customers. If you're planning to jump into app development, your first investment should really be a knowledgeable lawyer. Yes, it's going to cost you a little coin in the beginning, but consider the following things you'll need to know (especially if your app takes off): Privacy Concerns Generally, increased privacy concerns are what driving many app developers to acquire legal assistance during the development process. Most countries implement privacy laws where developers are obliged to make a privacy policy statement as a disclosing service provided for app users. App developers are subject to federal and state levels privacy laws based on the data being shared or stored in software. Check out Application Privacy to learn more about these specific privacy laws that apply to app developers. Software Development Compliance Policy Regulatory compliance is considered one of the main risks for software development industries that is specifically focused on application security. Developers need to be fully aware of the numerous industry-specific regulations concerning software development securities in order to keep things into equilibrium, minimize the risks and comply with the rules now and in the future. Furthermore, understanding this policy enable them to stay compliant particularly with the strictest regulations, legislations, legal text, legal landscape and modifications. Third Party Services Policy App developers must provide a readable and easily accessible privacy policy which informs the users with specific descriptions whether the data will be disclosed to third party services. Another factor is the confidentiality issues that occur when third parties are involved in the development process. Signing a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) should be paramount to ensure a third party will keep everything confidential. Since most platforms have privacy policy requirements necessary for approval flow, legal assistance may be required in preparing the privacy policy information concerning such policy. Legal Contracts If you're really a professional developer and serious about your career goals, you should adopt professional practices by starting with proper legal contracts. A written legal contract with essential documents such as Technology Assignment Agreement, Independent Contractor Agreement, Service or License Agreement, Privacy Policy and NDA can protect you and the people you work with. If you need help, this docracy has a good breakdown on what should be included in a mobile application development contract. Remember, once an app is ready to use in any device, it is subject to certain terms and conditions. There are certainly lots of legal aspects that need careful considerations to ensure that an app is fully compliant, and it might be too far out of your wheelhouse to just try and wing it. Do it the right way the first time by investing in a lawyer and you'll be able to focus on creating a smooth development environment and launch.

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  Cybersecurity

  Cybersecurity By Megan Brame

  Is Cyber Law on Your Side or Theirs?

  So, what is Cyber Law? According to top cyber law expert Pavan Duggal, cyber law refers to all the legal and regulatory aspects of Internet and the World Wide Web. Anything concerned with or related to or emanating from any legal aspects or issues concerning any activity of netizens and others, in Cyberspace comes within the ambit of Cyber law. In the world of internet, everything is just a click a way. Whether you're using it for mere entertainment like watching a funny cat video on YouTube, researching for your university paper, finding out what's happening in other countries, the internet or the cyber world plays a big role in our life. With the proliferation of technology and the internet, in some ways, it also has to be regulated and this is where cyber law comes in place. Throughout the years, a lot of laws have been passed; some for the protection of the people while others serve as a protection and safeguard for the government. In the Philippines, Republic Act No. 10175 or Cybercrime Law was passed in 2012 - the clause of the law ranges from cybercrime offenses like illegal access, illegal interception, computer identity theft, cybersex and whole lot more pertaining to various cyber offenses. In the United States, similar laws have also been legislated - from Digital Millennium Copyright Act, computer fraud, to Electronic Communications Privacy Act which is an amendment to the federal wiretap law. These laws were passed to protect the people against crimes, specifically cyber crimes. However, there also laws that are quite questionable. Laws that are almost or really invades people's privacy. Who could forget Edward Snowden, a former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) employee and also a whistleblower. During his work with the government he noticed the extensive reach of National Security Agency's everyday surveillance. He then copied some files which contained information about NSA's surveillance. After gathering enough information, he exposed NSA's practice of collecting data and basically violating people's privacy to the world. And, it's not only the government you should be cautious of, there are far more people who wants to take advantage of you through the internet. From hackers, a displeased customer, someone you had an argument with, the list goes on. And one of the reason why these things goes unnoticed is that because it's easier on the internet - "hiding" in front of their computer screen. But, we have cyber laws right? Yes. You're right. However, "Globally, laws restricting digital crime vary. As much as 70% of cyber crime crosses national borders, which can make solving cyber crimes a problem that has to be tackled through international cooperation — and with the UN reporting that a third to half of all nations have insufficient legal framework to criminalize extraterritorial cyber crimes, it can be difficult for law enforcement to bring these criminals to justice." I guess the question is, how can you protect yourself? Is the cyber law on our side or their side? Whether it's the government, hackers or a person you're dealing with, it is always nice to be extra cautious. Remember, it doesn't hurt to know how to protect yourself, find a good lawyer, educate yourself about internet security, in these times you'll never know when you need them.

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