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They could just as easily buy a car and cut it up. IP is generally protected by (threat of) a courtroom, not obscurity.

Buying an old car is not a way to get new parts, and buying a new car is not a way to get parts for an old car.

The high price of car parts is the reason why we have so much car theft. Promoting the availability of car parts will save costs for car insurance, law enforcement, the prosecutors, judges, juries, and jails.

The situation is outrageous. There are parts for which a dealer pays around $10.00 that retail over $500.00.

It could be done with some kind of multi-key approach, everything encrypted. I'd be more worried about not loosing data and that the correct data was put in there to begin with. Up to date revisions and everything.

Library of Congress or other national libraries could be used as trusted intermediaries. They've been keeping stuff safe for hundreds of years.