> Suppose somebody sends you a patch which implements a nice
> algorithm that just happens to be patented by that same
> somebody.  You don't know about the patent.
> 
> You integrate the patch into the kernel and distribute it,
> one year later you get sued by the original contributor of
> that patch because you distribute code that is patented by
> that person.
> 
> Not having some protection in the license could open you
> up to sneaky after-the-fact problems.
Accepting non-trivial patches from malicious source means running code
from malicious source on your boxen.  In kernel mode.  And in that case
patents are the least of your troubles...
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