End User License Agreements (EULAs) are the contracts between a vendor or app developer and the customers that use the product. They specify any usage limitations and aim to cap a company’s liability.

However, some EULAs give organizations more permissions than people realize. Here’s how to spot potential risks.

1. Read the Document Carefully Before Accepting

The EULA is only one of many agreements that people must accept before using a product. Others include the privacy policy and terms of service. However, research shows that most people scroll down and click “I Accept” before reading anything.

In one example, a woman won $10,000 after an insurance company inserted a line in a terms and conditions document. The organization did it to prove that people usually don’t read through the content.

Other companies took a different approach, such as including content in an EULA that committed a person to 1,000 hours of community service or giving up their first-born child. The goal in all cases was to drive home how easily a company could contractually obligate a person to do something that puts them at risk.

Moreover, the EULA concept can apply to questions of product liability, even when there is no product manufacturing involved.

It takes time and effort to read an EULA, but doing it could pay off. Alternative but less thorough approaches include reading the sections about concerning topics or using the CTRL + F keyboard shortcut to find certain words or phrases.

2. Evaluate Whether Changed Circumstances Might Violate an EULA

itunes user on cell phone

An EULA includes specifics about how a person can or cannot use a product or service. Some clarifications often seem laughable. For example, an EULA for Apple’s iTunes service included a portion about not using it to make nuclear weapons.

However, limiting risk requires a person to look at anything in the EULA that applies to them now but might not forever. For example, an EULA might specify that the individual can only avail of a product or service while in the United States.

That could become a tricky requirement for someone who travels frequently or plans to move abroad soon. Service providers may not catch on right away if a person accesses a product or service in a different place. If they do notice, however, the company may cancel the user’s contract or even take legal action against them.

Document Signing on Phone

Although most companies use contractual language to limit their risk of lawsuits, those incidents can still happen. One case involved a suit over a Snapchat speed-recording filter linked to a car crash that killed three minors.

Consumers can reduce their risk, too, by consulting a legal professional before agreeing to an EULA. Company representatives hire experienced legal teams, knowing that multiple factors cause product-related accidents.

People without law backgrounds often struggle to understand legal documents. That’s likely why most of them accept the terms and hope for the best.

However, if a person notices red flags in an EULA, a legal professional could help them understand the implications of the content and advise about the possible risks. A lawyer can also advise what could invalidate an EULA.

Legal cases over the video game Fortnite involved minors consenting to EULAs without a parent’s knowledge or permission. Also, some states allow people under 18 to disaffirm something in an EULA after signing it.

Many companies take measures to stop people from using products in ways that violate an EULA. For example, generic product keys exist to help people install Microsoft products. People get free, limited access, but eventually must pay.

Microsoft displays messages that prevent people from using the generic keys. Even so, some users figure out how to circumvent them. However, doing that violates the EULA and poses a prosecution risk to the user.

People should never assume an even slightly unconventional product use falls within what the EULA permits. Reading the document verifies what it does or does not allow.

5. Know How the EULA Affects Other Documents

Security Alert Computer Hack

As people evaluate EULAs, they should bear in mind that some other legal documents a company publishes may refer to and connect with the EULA. For example, a privacy policy details how a company can use someone’s data, so it may carry risks too.

However, privacy policies typically include language requiring agreeing to an EULA before using a product. A person cannot agree to a privacy policy and decline what the EULA requires.

Fortunately, technology can make it easier to evaluate a privacy policy. For example, Polisis is a free web-based tool that identifies risky parts of those documents, helping people gauge whether to proceed.

A privacy policy check could encourage a person to take a closer look at an EULA as well. For example, if a company handles data in ways a user deems excessive, it might also have questionable tactics detailed in an EULA.

Awareness Minimizes Risks

Most product usage comes with potential dangers.

However, using these actionable tips to scrutinize an EULA before agreeing to it can reduce adverse consequences.