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R
razumny
April 23, 2025
Question

Personal license on company computer

  • April 23, 2025
  • 1 reply
  • 169 views

I have a personal (Family) license for 1Password. My employer has chosen a different password manager. They are now claiming that there are copyright issues involved with my using my personal license on a company computer. As such, I would like clear answers to the following:

  • Are there, in fact, any copyright issues involved with installing 1Password on a company computer?
  • Is there any issue using my personal license on a company computer issued to me?

1 reply

AJCxZ0
AJCxZ0
April 23, 2025

Speaking as a legal professional licensed to advise in your jurisdiction and as a representative of your employer, despite being equally unqualified for both, the answers to your questions are

  1. No*
  2. Maybe

Copyright law varies across the many legal systems of the world and is complex and nuanced, however it concerns ownership of created works. Installing and using software to store and access passwords seems unlikely to create any works, but even if it did, then the ownership of the work would almost certainly not depend on the software or the computer, but the contract with your employer - particularly if you agreed that any work created is considered work for hire.
See e.g. Chapter 11: Subject Matter and Scope of Copyright of Title 17 of the United States Code.

There may be an issue with you installing software on your employer's computer. It's their property and they chose how it should be used, the details of which they should clearly communicate to you in the form a policy such as terms of use.

You appear to focus on the license which exists as a result of the contract between you and 1Password. Licensing of software on company computers is almost always a matter of concern to the employer, though the concern is usually related to liability arising from the use of unlicensed software.

Given my initial disclaimer and the lack of any relevant detail in your post, this reply is provided as-is with no warranty of fitness and a 110% money back guarantee.

*[As in maybe.]

Tom
Tom
April 23, 2025

Speaking with the same caveats as @AJCxZ0 I second the findings and would move to strike. There can't be any copyright infringements, at least, not with an employer (in most countries). You might get a slap on the wrist for installing 'other than company policy software' or 'visiting sites on the restricted list'.

Aside from the already mentioned facts, IF there was some issue with 'reused parts of content' (to work around copyleft and copyright territory) that would be between your employer and AgileBits (the company behind 1Password). It can't ever be with a user - though - if you are employed by (let's imagine) a US company that highly frowns upon Chinese things, then bolstering a BYD brand car as your company car is 'against the rules', but they can't infringe them duplicating the tablet-like construction found in some major US electric vehicle company nor the look-and-feel of something a fruit-named company brought to market 'first'. That would be between their lawyers and not with you :)

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