3 ms·

Since when is web scraping a "malicious task"?

• leetbulb 9y ago
  Read the ToS of most websites. :)
  • shakna 9y ago
    It's not as clear cut, and the law doesn't seem to be entirely clear either [0]. Many in the tech world don't agree that it should be [1]. I'd say this would be one of the most controversial things to refer to as 'malicious'. [0] https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2017/07/linkedin-its-illegal-to-scrape-our-website-without-permission/ https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2017/07/linkedin-its-ill... [1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14891301 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14891301
  • simlevesque 9y ago
    Most ToS don't forbid scraping for "malicious tasks", they just don't allow it for any task.
    • wolco 9y ago
      At what point does a tos stop being enforcable? Would something like by visiting you grant all copyright on any materials the visor has created to this site? Could you demand 10% of yearly revenue for any business that visits and be legally able to retrieve the funds?
  • Dolores12 9y ago
    There is a difference between reading ToS and accepting it. I am not obligated to anything just by downloading webpage from internet.
  • gsich 9y ago
    I don't need to accept those to use the site. (in most cases)