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Version: Current

Legal Notices

Last updated: 14 August 2026

This Legal Notice provides general information concerning the ownership, licensing and permitted use of the CRADLE project.

The legally binding terms governing use of the proprietary CRADLE Software are contained in the CRADLE Proprietary Software Licence. Copyright ownership and attribution information is contained in the CRADLE Copyright Notice.

A particular CRADLE release, distribution or component may include additional or different terms in a licence schedule, release notice, NOTICE file or written agreement. Where specific terms expressly apply, those terms prevail over this general Legal Notice to the extent of any inconsistency.

Proprietary Software​

The CRADLE compiler, assembler and associated proprietary implementation materials are proprietary software owned or lawfully controlled by National Cybersecurity R&D Lab (NCL).

The proprietary CRADLE Software is licensed, not sold. Access to or possession of the Software does not transfer ownership or any intellectual property right.

Except as expressly permitted by the applicable CRADLE licence, another written agreement or applicable law, users must not copy, modify, distribute, sublicense, resell, rent, lease, disclose or reverse engineer the proprietary CRADLE Software.

All rights not expressly granted are reserved.

The copyright notice and ownership framework applicable to CRADLE are set out in COPYRIGHT.md.

Copyright © 2026 National Cybersecurity R&D Lab (NCL). All rights reserved.

Copyright and other rights in independently developed plugins, integrations and other third-party materials remain with their respective rights holders unless otherwise agreed in writing.

Licence​

The proprietary CRADLE software is licensed under the terms set out in LICENCE.md, unless another written agreement expressly governs the relevant user, organisation, release or distribution.

Possession of, access to or use of CRADLE does not constitute a transfer of ownership of the proprietary CRADLE software or any associated intellectual property rights.

Only those rights expressly granted under the applicable licence, written agreement or applicable law are granted.

Intellectual Property​

CRADLE and its associated source code, object code, compiler and assembler implementations, documentation, specifications, website materials and other original materials may be protected by copyright and other applicable intellectual property laws.

Except where expressly stated otherwise, publication or availability of CRADLE materials does not constitute a waiver, assignment or transfer of any intellectual property right.

Publication of binaries, specifications, APIs, Intermediate Representation formats or other interoperability information does not make the underlying proprietary implementation open source.

Nothing in this Legal Notice grants any right to use the CRADLE or NCL name, logo, trade mark, service mark, domain name or other source identifier except as expressly authorised by the relevant rights holder or applicable law.

Interfaces, Plugins and Independent Development​

CRADLE may provide documented language syntax, Intermediate Representation formats, APIs, schemas, plugin interfaces and other interoperability mechanisms.

Subject to the applicable CRADLE licence, users may develop independent software that interoperates with CRADLE through these documented mechanisms.

Unless otherwise agreed in writing, an independently developed Plugin does not become the property of NCL merely because it interoperates with CRADLE. Copyright and other rights in independently authored Plugin code remain with the Plugin's author or other lawful rights holder.

The Plugin owner may select a lawful licence for independently developed Plugin code, subject to any obligations applying to CRADLE-owned or third-party material incorporated into that Plugin.

Permission to develop or distribute an independent Plugin does not include permission to copy, distribute, sublicense or resell the proprietary CRADLE Software.

User Materials and Generated Output​

Unless otherwise agreed in writing, rights in independently authored .cradle files remain with their respective authors or lawful rights holders.

Use of CRADLE to create, edit, validate, compile, assemble or process a .cradle file does not, by itself, transfer ownership of that file to NCL.

Subject to the applicable licence, users may use Generated Output produced through authorised use of CRADLE.

Where a .cradle file or Generated Output contains CRADLE-owned code, templates, libraries, runtime components or third-party materials, those portions remain subject to their respective licence terms.

Reverse Engineering and Statutory Rights​

Except as expressly permitted by the applicable CRADLE licence, another written agreement or applicable law, users must not reverse engineer, decompile, disassemble or otherwise attempt to derive the non-public source code or internal implementation of proprietary CRADLE components.

Nothing in this Legal Notice excludes or restricts any permitted use, statutory exception or right that cannot lawfully be excluded or restricted.

This Legal Notice is intended to operate subject to sections 238 to 240 of the Copyright Act 2021 of Singapore and any other applicable mandatory provisions.

Confidential and Non-Public Materials​

Non-public CRADLE source code, implementation documentation, algorithms, architecture, development materials and other information disclosed under circumstances giving rise to an obligation of confidentiality must be handled in accordance with the applicable confidentiality obligations.

Public availability of CRADLE binaries, documentation, specifications, interfaces or interoperability information does not constitute disclosure of non-public CRADLE source code or implementation information.

Nothing in this Legal Notice authorises disclosure of confidential CRADLE materials to an unauthorised third party.

Third-Party Software​

CRADLE may incorporate, depend upon, communicate with or otherwise interact with software, libraries, frameworks, services or other materials provided by third parties.

Such third-party materials remain subject to their respective copyright notices, licences and other applicable terms.

Nothing in this Legal Notice modifies, replaces, limits or supersedes any obligation imposed by an applicable third-party licence.

Where required, relevant third-party copyright and licensing notices shall be provided with the applicable CRADLE distribution or accompanying documentation.

Documentation​

CRADLE documentation describes the relevant CRADLE software, language, interfaces and related functionality.

Features, syntax, interfaces, implementation details, compatibility requirements, dependencies and behaviour may differ between releases.

Unless expressly stated otherwise, publication of CRADLE documentation, specifications, examples or interface descriptions does not grant a licence to reproduce, distribute or otherwise exploit proprietary CRADLE software or non-public implementation materials.

Documentation describing a documented interface does not imply that the underlying implementation of that interface is open source.

Development and Pre-Release Software​

Development, experimental, preview, alpha, beta, release-candidate or other pre-release versions of CRADLE may be incomplete and may contain defects, incompatibilities or functionality that is subsequently modified or removed.

Such materials are subject to the terms accompanying the relevant distribution.

Availability of a development or pre-release component does not constitute a commitment that the component, feature, interface or behaviour will appear in a subsequent release.

Contributions​

Copyright in a contribution to CRADLE remains with the relevant contributor or other rights holder unless ownership has been validly transferred or another applicable agreement provides otherwise.

Contributors may be required to agree to separate contribution terms granting NCL or another designated rights holder sufficient rights to use, modify, reproduce, distribute, sublicense or otherwise incorporate the contribution into CRADLE.

Nothing in this Legal Notice alone transfers copyright in a contribution.

Commercial Use​

Commercial use of the proprietary CRADLE compiler and assembler is permitted only to the extent authorised under the applicable CRADLE licence or another written agreement.

Applicable licensing terms may distinguish between:

  • internal commercial use
  • research and academic use
  • enterprise use
  • commercial service provision
  • commercial redistribution
  • resale
  • sublicensing

Permission for one category of use does not imply permission for another.

Permission to develop or commercially distribute an independent plugin does not grant a corresponding right to commercially redistribute CRADLE itself.

Future Releases and Licensing​

Future CRADLE releases may be distributed under the same or different licence terms.

The licence applicable to each release shall be the licence expressly identified for that release.

A change in the licence applicable to a future CRADLE release does not, by itself, amend, revoke or replace the terms applicable to a previously distributed release.

Nothing in this Legal Notice constitutes a representation, undertaking or commitment that any future CRADLE release will be distributed under a particular licensing model.

Lawful and Authorised Use​

CRADLE is a general-purpose software development, modelling, simulation and cyber-range technology.

Users are responsible for ensuring that their access to and use of CRADLE complies with applicable laws, regulations, contractual obligations, policies, authorisations and permissions.

CRADLE must not be used to access, test, interfere with, disrupt, damage, compromise or otherwise interact with any system, network, service, account, device, infrastructure or data without lawful authority and all required permissions.

The availability of any CRADLE feature, example, configuration, interface or capability does not constitute permission or legal authorisation to use it against a third-party environment.

NCL does not authorise, direct, encourage or endorse unlawful, malicious, fraudulent, abusive or otherwise unauthorised use of CRADLE.

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, NCL and the applicable CRADLE rights holders, developers, contributors, maintainers and distributors are not responsible for consequences arising from a user's independent unlawful, malicious, abusive or unauthorised conduct.

Nothing in this Legal Notice excludes or limits liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited.

CRADLE Name and Branding​

Permission to use CRADLE software or documented interfaces does not grant any right to represent a third-party plugin, product or service as officially developed, endorsed, approved or certified by CRADLE or NCL.

Subject to any applicable branding guidelines, an independent developer may make truthful statements describing interoperability, including:

  • "compatible with CRADLE"
  • "plugin for CRADLE"
  • "designed to integrate with CRADLE"

Terms implying official status, including:

  • "Official CRADLE Plugin"
  • "CRADLE Certified"
  • "CRADLE Approved"
  • "NCL Approved"

must not be used without express authorisation from the relevant rights holder.

No Implied Licence​

No licence, right or permission arises by implication, estoppel or otherwise solely because CRADLE software, documentation, specifications, binaries, APIs, Intermediate Representation formats, interfaces or other materials have been made accessible to a person or organisation.

Only rights expressly granted under the applicable licence, written agreement or applicable law are granted.

Permission to develop interoperable software does not imply broader rights in proprietary CRADLE software.

Reservation of Rights​

Except for rights expressly granted under an applicable licence or written agreement, all rights, title and interest in proprietary CRADLE materials remain reserved to their respective rights holders.

No provision of this Legal Notice shall be interpreted as transferring ownership of CRADLE intellectual property merely by reason of downloading, installing, accessing, executing, evaluating or otherwise using CRADLE.

For the avoidance of doubt, this reservation of rights does not claim ownership of independently developed plugins merely because they interoperate with CRADLE.

Relationship with Release-Specific Terms​

Different CRADLE releases or components may be distributed under different legal terms.

Where a specific release contains or references a licence, licence agreement, NOTICE file, copyright notice or other applicable legal terms, those terms shall apply to that release.

Where an independent plugin or other third-party component is distributed under its own licence, that licence governs the relevant independent component.

In the event of an inconsistency between this general Legal Notice and a licence or written agreement expressly governing a particular CRADLE release, distribution or component, the specific licence or written agreement shall prevail to the extent of the inconsistency.

Governing Law​

This Legal Notice and any CRADLE agreement that expressly incorporates it are governed by the laws of the Republic of Singapore.

A separate written agreement may specify different governing-law or dispute-resolution terms for the distribution or arrangement governed by that agreement.

Mandatory Rights​

Nothing in this Legal Notice excludes, restricts or waives any right, defence, exception, permitted use or protection that cannot lawfully be excluded, restricted or waived.

Copyright © 2026 National Cybersecurity R&D Lab (NCL). All rights reserved.

CRADLE is proprietary software and is licensed, not sold.