legality of unpacking minified javascript [closed]

Question

I know that this is more of a legal question but I thought I'd give this a shot.

I am learning javascript and I found some interesting drop down menu's on a webpage. I wanted to learn more about them but the code is minified with the following in the comments above the minified code:

// Unauthorized decryption/reproduction of any codes contained herein is strictly prohibited and will result in severe civil and criminal penalties.

Is it really illegal for me to unpack the code and look through it? Can I be sued for looking at code without actually using it?

Answer 1

I'm no expert, but if there were anything criminal about viewing a website's source code, then browsers would not make it so easy.

While I can definitely say that using someone else's code without permission is wrong, I think it's a great thing to learn from it.

Answer 2

_IANAL

Minification is not encryption. You already have permission to copy the file to your machine and open it (as your browser requires these permissions to use it). There is no legal protection for examining the contents of a file that's freely available. You can even modify it on your own system at will, these sorts of copyright allowances fall under fair use because you're doing so for educational purposes.

What you can't do is distribute the file or the modified file.

Answer 3

In my honest opinion, it shouldn't (and probably isn't) illegal to look at the code since it's open to anyone.

Using and learning from the source code are two completely different things. Using someone's work without their permission is simply wrong no matter what the context is (code, images, art, etc).

But learning from other source code is probably the best way to learn and get better.

As for their legal note, I think they just put that there to scare people off but I don't think it would stand in court.