Dear Maintainer and Debian Quality Assurance Team,
I am reporting a violation of the Debian Free Software Guidelines (DFSG) in
the "xsnow" package (version 1:3.8.3-1, currently in trixie/stable).
The upstream source code contains hidden geofenced/locale-fenced logic that
alters the application's behavior based on the user's language settings.
Specifically, if the user's locale is set to Russian ("ru"), the
application triggers a disguised visual element (Ukrainian flags labeled as
"EXTRATREE") with a significantly higher probability.
The non-compliant logic is located in `xsnow-3.8.3/src/scenery.c` line 332
around
#ifdef USE_EXTRATREE
if (global.Language && !strcmp(global.Language,"ru") && drand48() <
0.3)
tt = MAXTREETYPE;
if (drand48() < 0.02)
tt = MAXTREETYPE;
#endif
This targeted behavior strictly violates the following foundational Debian
principles:
1. DFSG #5 (No Discrimination Against Persons or Groups): The software
introduces distinct behavioral changes and targeted messaging aimed
specifically at users of a particular language/locale group.
2. DFSG #6 (No Discrimination Against Fields of Endeavor): The application
restricts or alters its intended neutral functionality based on the user's
environment.
Since the package maintainer is also the upstream author who introduced
this geofencing mechanism, I am CC'ing this report to the wider Debian
development community to ensure proper evaluation according to the Debian
Policy.
Please consider patching out this non-free geofencing logic to keep the
package compliant with DFSG.
Thank you.
