Illegal downloading may be a common crime, like a speeding ticket or soliciting. Yet it is still a crime, and a serious one at that. In 2009, a Boston University graduate was told he must pay $675,000 as punishment for illegally downloading music and distributing it to his friends. The student offended four major music companies with his actions. While his sum is enormous, the graduate's lawyer was able to help him avoid paying the original amount charged: $4 million. In June of 2009, a case ended when a woman was sentenced to pay $2 million to music companies after downloading just 24 songs illegally.
People who download music or movies illegally may think that they will never be found out, especially if they commit their crime in the privacy of their own homes. Yet two primary groups police the downloading of music and other medias. One is the Recording Industry of America, and the other is the Motion Picture Association of America. These two establishments monitor downloads and search through websites to detect any copyright violations.
Most often, these two groups focus their efforts on colleges and universities, which are where many of the illegal downloads take place. This is because college students are often short on cash and want to watch movies or discover new bands on the spot. Yet, by using illegal music websites and watching movies for free, these students are not giving the artists credit or payment for their copyrighted works. When the Recording or Motion Picture industries note that a song has been illegally downloaded, they will normally send an e-mail to the school authorities, who will then contact the student to clarify the issue. If the student is proven guilty, illegal downloading can come with serious financial and legal implications.
Under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, distributing copyright materials is punishable by law. Those who are caught pirating music or movies can be sent to jail for up to five years, and may be charged up to $150,000 per file downloaded. Also, other charges may be brought against the suspect, and the copyright holder has the right to file a lawsuit against you. You may need to pay for damages to a company's copyright. Another punishment to illegal downloading is viruses. While these are not a correction issued by the law, many illegal files have viruses attached that can permeate your computer. You may experience a loss of data, excessive pop-ups, a slower internet connection, or identity theft because your downloaded something that you shouldn't have.
There are times when the Recording Industry and Motion Picture associations may get it wrong. Often they can perceive a download that didn't exist, or think that song came from an illegal source when it didn't. If you were accused of illegal downloading and did not commit the crime, you will want to fight the accusations in court with a criminal defense attorney at your side. Sometimes you may be unaware that you are sharing copyrighted files. Some software, such as P2P, shares your files with others automatically, and you don't even need to click a button to make your music available for others.
Turn off any file-sharing options on your software so that you do not run into a problem like this. If you have a wireless router set up, then make sure to organize the securities so that others cannot use your router to get music and frame you for their crime. By being careful and cautious, you will be able to avoid the accusations of illegal downloading, and steer clear of years in jail or hefty fines. It is always best to use a video-sharing site that is legal, or purchase/rent your movies from a site where it costs a few dollars to watch the movie. Always use legal music sites to purchase your music.
