Here's what you need to know about file-sharing and the law:
File-"sharing" is a misnomer: it's really file-"giving-away-copies" and unless you have the copyright holder's permission to do it, it's against the law. Copyright law says that a copyright holder has the exclusive right to decide if and how a work is going to be distributed. Even if you legally purchase a work, you do not have the right to make a copy of it and give that copy away to someone else. While there are some exceptions to the exclusive rights of a copyright holder, giving away entire copies of content for entertainment purposes - songs, movies, video games, books, TV shows, etc. - violates copyright law. Downloading - taking copyright files - and uploading - giving away copyrighted files are both against the law.
You and Stanford share the same interest in complying with copyright law to avoid legal ramifications. There is nothing that requires a copyright holder to first send an electronic notice of a copyright violation like the one you have received: the copyright holder could have gone straight to a lawsuit against you.
Copyright law provides for statutory damages of up to $150,000 per unlawful copy, which translates to $150,000 for every song, movie, television program, book or other copyrighted work unlawfully downloaded, distributed or made available. Please bear in mind the multiplying consequences of uploading copyrighted materials and sharing them with others - you may be held responsible for every upload and every copy that is made from the material you uploaded. In recent years, lawsuits were filed against individuals using the Stanford network. In the first suit, the network user allegedly shared 11 songs unlawfully and in the second suit, the network user allegedly shared 8 songs unlawfully. In February of 2007, the Recording Industry Association of America began a campaign of sending out "Early Settlement Notices" to university students throughout the country. Under this program, if students are not willing to setlle file-sharing violations with the Recording Artists for thousands of dollars, then a lawsuit against the student is filed. As of September 2007, 17 Stanford students have been targeted by this program. The Recording Industry promises to continue to send these notices each month, and Stanford continues to receive its share. For more information about Copyright Law or the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, see https://fairuse.stanford.edu/ or www.copyright.gov.
Copyright law provides for statutory damages of up to $150,000 per unlawful copy, which translates to $150,000 for every song, movie, television program, book or other copyrighted work unlawfully downloaded, distributed or made available. Please bear in mind the multiplying consequences of uploading copyrighted materials and sharing them with others - you may be held responsible for every upload and every copy that is made from the material you uploaded. In recent years, lawsuits were filed against individuals using the Stanford network. In the first suit, the network user allegedly shared 11 songs unlawfully and in the second suit, the network user allegedly shared 8 songs unlawfully. In February of 2007, the Recording Industry Association of America began a campaign of sending out “Early Settlement Notices” to university students throughout the country. Under this program, if students are not willing to settle file-sharing violations with the Recording Artists for thousands of dollars, then a lawsuit against the student is filed. As of September 2007, 17 Stanford students have been targeted by this program. The Recording Industry promises to continue to send these notices each month, and Stanford continues to receive its share. For more information about Copyright Law or the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, see https://fairuse.stanford.edu/ or www.copyright.gov.
Here's what you need to know about unlawful file-sharing at Stanford:
In addition to legal ramifications, Stanford policy clearly states that members of the Stanford community must respect copyright law. See https://adminguide.stanford.edu/chapter-6/subchapter-2/policy-6-2-1. Under Stanford policy, copyright violations can lead to loss of privileges, such as access to Stanford's computing resources, or disciplinary action, up to and including expulsion for students and termination for faculty and staff.
Please contact the Information Security Office via a Service Now ticket if you have any questions about this information.
Information and Instructions for Students, Faculty, and Staff responding to a 1st Copyright Notice
Here's what you need to do:
If you have purchased or received a lawful copy of the content that is subject of the complaint, you must stop making that content available to others through file-sharing services. If you do not have a lawful copy of the content, you must destroy the file.
To avoid interruption in your network service, and to help protect yourself against possible legal action from copyright holders, you must respond within 48 hours of the date indicated in the email you received. Log on with your SUNetID and password at resolution.stanford.edu. The process will lead you through resolving the complaint.
Stanford will inform the complainant that the matter is resolved. Stanford will not offer your name or other personal information to the complainant. Stanford may, however, be compelled by a subpoena to release your identity at some future time.
Please note: it is not an acceptable excuse to claim that coprighted material was downloaded or shared by someone that you allowed to use your computer. Each user is responsible for their individual Stanford account and all devices registered to that account. As a user of Stanford's network, you are expected to keep your computer(s) secure and should refrain from allowing others the use of your machine(s).
Student, Faculty, and Staff Responding to a 2nd or 3rd DMCA Complaint:
Stanford has an escalating scale of consequeneces for repeat copyright violations.
Upon receipt of a 2nd DMCA Complaint:
A student, faculty, or staff internet connection will be terminated immediately and will not be reinstated until four days after the student/faculty/staff member completes the attestation at resolution.stanford.edu.
For students, the Residence Dean will be notified about the incident. For Graduate Students, the appropriate Department Chair will also be notified.
For faculty members, any subsequent complaint will be forwarded to your Department Chair or Dean, and the Office of the General Counsel.
For University staff members, this email serves as a warning under the Addressing Conduct and Performance Issues Administrative Guide Memo 2.1.16. A copy of this complaint will be fowarded to Human Resources, who will shared it with your supervisor.
On a 3rd DMCA Complaint:
A student/faculty/staff member's internet connection will be immediately disconnected and will not be reinstated until the following is met:
- The matter will be referred to Judicial Affairs or discussed with the Department Chair or Dean or the Office of the General Counsel or Human Resources
- Schedule a meeting with the University Chief Information Security Officer to discuss the violations
If you elect to file a legal counter-notification with the complainant:
This step is not necessary for Stanford's purposes.
Please note that if you file a counter-notice or respond to any link in the forwarded message from the complainant, you will be identifying yourself to that complainant. This complaint identifies your computer's address on Stanford's network, but the complainant does not currently know your identity. You may wish to consult a legal representative before undertaking this course of action.
If you believe a claim to be erroneous, you can file a counter-notice within Stanford via a Service Now ticket with any relevant information. You will not be identifying yourself to the complainant.
