FILE SHARING: Music, Movies, Software

& COPYRIGHT VIOLATIONS

Frequently Asked Questions

Why are Mason users receiving STOPIT notices about copyright violations?

The University Responsible Use of Computing (RUC) policy forbids users from using Mason computing resources and networks for copyright violations. Under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998, copyright holders have increased authority to enforce their rights against those using copyrighted materials without a license. The music, software and film industries have been particularly aggressive about enforcing their exclusive right to distribute the works of their artists. Under the new law, the University is liable for a fine of up to $150,000 if it fails to assert its own policy against copyright violations.

How do outsiders find violations?

Music files (e.g., MP3 files) have been the main objects of attention. The music industry association has commissioned the building of “locator bots” that systematically scan IP addresses looking to see if any of the common music sharing programs is active on a
port (e.g., LimeWire, eDonkey, KaZaA). The bot asks the music program whether it has music and movie titles by particular artists. If the program answers positively, the bot reports the IP address and title to an authority, who then sends out violation notices.

Why is having music and movies on my computer a violation?

When your music and movies are under the custody of a music-sharing program, anyone can access it and download a copy. This makes you a distributor of copyrighted materials. Under the law, this is illegal unless you have permission from the copyright holder to distribute the materials. It is also a violation of Mason’s RUC policy, which is why Mason passes them on to you upon receiving the violation notices.

What did I do wrong?

You are offering to serve as a music, film, or software distributor without permission from the owners or publishers. This is a violation both of the copyright law (Title 17, U.S. Code, §106) and the University RUC policy.

What do I have to delete?

To comply with the copyright law, you should remove all music, movie, and software programs from your system for which you do not have an explicit license that allows you to distribute these files to others.

I received the copyright violation notice but I never put any music or movies on my computer. What should I do?

A friend, roommate, or intruder might have used your computer to download music or movies without your knowledge. Contact the ITU Support Center (x38870) to request instructions for removing these files, uninstalling the share program, and changing your password to prevent further misuse of your machine.

Do the locator bots monitor what I download? Search my hard drive?

No, the locator bots are only "seeing" those machines that make files available for downloading. They cannot monitor files you downloads or see anything else on your hard drive.

What about my privacy?

The University policy is to respect privacy except when a violation of the RUC policy is under investigation, or a subpoena or FOIA request is being processed. Storing or distributing copyrighted music, movies, or software, without permission of the copyright holder violates the Mason policy. If you refuse to comply with the policy, the University can permanently block your network access and deny you permission to connect to the Mason network.

When you put up any server that makes some files on your computer accessible to anyone in the Internet, those files are no longer private. The free file sharing programs are of this kind.