Yeah, as much as it seems what they are doing is underhanded, because the add-ons are just python (source), I can’t see any issue with the GPL. If you are writing an add on that uses Blender API calls, then it must include a GPL, which means that anyone can freely redistribute it, or even charge money for it.
Anything that has “import bpy” has to be GPL or they are in copyright violation.
Well. You can do something like this:
Proprietary software <=> MIT bridge <=> GPL addon
and then distribute the proprietary part separately.
Like I said a while back though, nobody has tested this in court thus far.
That is indeed a bottleneck in my view as well. I wonder what a court decision for such a scenario would look like.
I am uploading frequently addons to that website in Iran,
but be careful, I made them so that they corrupt your blend-files instead of being the actual addon.
(above is not true, but gives to think).
thats called malware. the reason i dont install addons or play bge games. python is simply much to powerful. would an anti virus even detect something like this?
The thing to note, nearly every single game engine uses an API or a language that allows you to interface with the OS in some sense (which includes deleting files). Those same API’s can also allow the use of careless calls designed to hog the CPU.
By this logic, we should not play games on the PC at all, but rather stick to highly curated platforms like the consoles and iOS. In fact to be perfectly safe, the PC itself shouldn’t be used at all for anything other than storing photos and sending emails.
And then, only perfectly legal, very innocent photos of kittens and puppies and floral-print tablecloths. 
That is an uphill battle which will make you earn new enemies.
Probably I didn’t say that what one think I said. And I expected that.
It could also mean: You never know what is on such sites. An addon obtained by an author in the store, you can be pretty sure it’s reliable. (otherwise the author will get a bad name simply said). Getting an addon via such pirate sites, it can be anything.
That was what I tried to punch in.
(Probably I have a strange way to express in English as well, apology for that).
Sure but people end up blaming Blender for corrupting their files.
from the “above is not true part”, I get he’s not actually doing anything like that. He tried to make people aware of the possibility of corrupted downloads in a humorous way.
Might have not come across as he intended.
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If that is all a malicious blender addon did you should consider yourself VERY lucky.
One could quite easily write an addon (or even a blender file driver) that steals all the data and password keychains or ruins a system. Think very carefully about where you download them from.
Yes, of course. I am very well aware of that and I don’t pirate software. I also wasn’t saying that a malicious piece did “only” that to me. I never was in contact with any malicious software, for said reasons.
My point was, that I have the feeling people actually believe @anon72338821 uploaded to that site and are arguing with him over that. I just wanted to point out, that it is my understanding he’s not doing this. Nothing more.
Every other point about the risks and damages like security, philosophy and financial drawbacks for developers I am completely conform to.
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Eh. You can just read the source. Most addons don’t take that long to scan through. It wouldn’t be very easy to hide a bitcoin miner or some such in there.
Not that I’m recommending people go out and get “pirated” addons, but let’s look at it objectively, shall we?
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A few addons are indeed small (a few ridiculous small) and if you know some python, it’s not to difficult to scan through.
There are also quite bigger addons like Boxcutter, Asset Manager, DECALmachine KITOPS, Hardops etc. Scanning through them if you know a bit python take quite some effort. Most likely you get stuck somewhere understanding it.
But if you know Python that well, maybe it’s not a big deal what is out there and it’s then relatively easy to make the your addon precisely tailored to your needs.
(And just to clarify for some; indeed I am not uploading Iranian sites. I don’t know where to find them and I spend all free time I have improving my own addon.).
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Since I am a python programmer, when I download an addon the first thing I do is read the code to see what it does and maybe learn something, even with pretty big addons, passing the eye real fast over the overall structure can give you a sense of what the code does, if you get used with, its easy to spot any obfuscated or unusual kind of code since it stands out of the high legibility of python.
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