FXHelpline_EvanF says:

Forex Robots are just automated scripts that run inside of your trading platform (the software used to place trades with your Forex broker.)

Most of the Forex Robots you see advertised on the internet are not actually standalone programs, they’re mostly just Expert Advisors (an add-on that places trades for you) for the popular MetaTrader 4 software (a platform used by the majority of retail Forex brokers, for better or worse.)

The robot definitely isn’t an account on its own. You’ll never actually deposit your money straight to the robot itself (if anyone is asking you to do that, it’s a scam.)

To use a robot, this is what generally happens:

1) After you buy the robot, the seller will probably send you a link to download it (or send it straight to your e-mail, but I doubt that.)

2) You open an account with a Forex broker. Please do your research and choose a regulated broker. (Many brokers have different software packages for you to trade with — but the most popular is MetaTrader 4 in the retail industry. Chances are your robot needs to be used with a broker that offers the MetaTrader 4 platform but there are a lot of choices for this category.

Just do a search for MT4 brokers or MetaTrader 4 brokers but be careful and make sure that the broker is regulated by a respected body like the NFA (for brokers in the US) or the FSA (for brokers in the UK.) Look around for real reviews (not sponsored ones) of MT4 brokers, but at least make sure they’re regulated.

3) After you open the account, you send your funds to the broker (not to your robot and definitely not to the person who sold you a robot.) If you opened an account with a UK broker, there are extra protections for your deposits but don’t take this to mean you can’t lose money (you still can if you don’t manage it well… or if your robot doesn’t manage it well, actually — and yes, that happens. A lot.)

4) You install the trading platform from your broker (usually a customized version of MetaTrader 4) and your robot would be installed in it. You then enable live trading for the robot to allow it to trade your account.

I’m sure the robot vendor will give you all these instructions (or different ones if the robot is something other than an MT4 expert advisor… although that’s very rare in retail) but I’ve outlined this so you can get a better understanding of what you’re dealing with. In other words, the robot itself doesn’t accept funds (or at least shouldn’t)

On a side note, I would recommend you learn a little more about the Forex market before you dive into this. I know all the internet marketers make it look like a pot of gold to you, but you’re better off saving that money for now and learning to trade in a demo account first. Once you get the hang of it (or at least once you get to understand how the market works, and learn how leverage and margin actually works) then consider the robot.

Be smart. Don’t risk your money on a robot that’ll trade something you don’t fully understand.

As for legalities, yes, it’s entirely legal to trade with automated systems. It’s done very often on Wall Street and in London, actually (the world’s largest financial centers that dominate the Forex market)… of course, the ones they use that actually work profitably for them definitely won’t be sold on the internet by a flashy web site

Try to learn more about the market first and then make an informed decision. There’s no rush — this market will still be here (and even if it isn’t by some miracle of global politics, another one will take its place.)