Inkbunny

I didn't think it was legal for the isp to give out your information unless they were served with a warrant o.O
Whatever happened to privacy agreements?

JackJackJackJack

12 years, 8 months ago

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In the future I would use programs like Peer Block to protect yourself while downloading things. But sorry I cant give you any legal advice. Good luck to you.

FeatheredAdventures

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ JackJackJackJack

*Snuggles you tightly* Thank you for replying. I'll keep that in mind next time.

iball8888

12 years, 8 months ago

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Peer Block does absolutely nothing.

SenGrisane

12 years, 8 months ago

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This sounds rather phishy to me. Can this be a simple scam?

FeatheredAdventures

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ SenGrisane

I can assure you this isn't a scam. This is an on going thing happening throughout the state. The docket number and the filing number check out, along with the attorney in my state who is filing it. This is 100% real unfortunately.

SenGrisane

12 years, 8 months ago

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Hm... if you don't mind those persons getting your name then do nothing. I doubt they will get money out of you.

But if you would like to stay anonymous then maybe you can tell your provider you have no idea who downloaded something like that but you surely didn't (doesn't matter if this is true. Someone could have hijacked your wifi or something). And you would like to see what evidence/claims/proof/right (sorry I don't know the lawer terms) do theses people have to get your address. and ask who will get the name (unless they have already named the porn company in detail).

Threaten them to change providers if they respond to such claims might also help, but no guarantees.

IrishWolf

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ SenGrisane

I've done the "I don't know who could have downloaded _______ " 2 times and got out of it. All I had to do was sign a form at the cable company's payment office saying "it would never happen again..." heh heh.

They warned me if it happens again, they'll cut me off. No more internet in my name for 2 years. I swore off movie downloads, but music is a whole different story.

ShadowsInc

12 years, 8 months ago

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Edited 12 years, 8 months ago by Owner

Their claims of distributing your information has to be false however. It is illegal under any conditions to disclose any information of any customer or user without signing any document or agreement that says they can. Even under certain circumstances where it is legal for them to provide information based on an a prior agreement, there are usually particular terms and policies that would need to be upheld on their part. This all reeks of something. I'd look into it a little more, or at the very least, catch them off-guard and go to court with it. Most of these scams (if it is) will assume names and positions of real people and places, so as to lend credence to their false identity, and simply expect you to pay instead of making a court case out of it. Most people follow the prior path and simply pay them money for fear of losing more money through making a case out of it. I would advise finding someone who will find out exactly what's going on, or typing your claim into Google or something, to see if there are other similar claims. Usually certain claims (if false or scammed) will appear on the internet, to warn other people about these people. I hope I helped, you can talk to me :3

derfurguy

12 years, 8 months ago

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it could be a fake. My friend is a hacker and he has told me hackers can go around, hack people's computers and plant/ claim evidence that you owe money or did something illegal. My friend told me he hacked this "ass-wholes" medical record, found out the guy took a ride in an ambulance, his insurence only paid half and the collection agency forgot to mention it after three years. So He called him, posing as the medical collection agency and he had they guy pay him $300 over the phone. SO it could be a hacker....

CursedFerret

12 years, 8 months ago

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What I do not get is that it is for a copyright for a porn movie. Warner Brothers, Paramount, Disney, I can see these coming after people for downloading. But a porn studio? Maybe if you purchase the DVD and say you wanted a copy of it digitally for trips so you did not have to bring the DVD with you for private reasons.

Wonder if the fact they invaded your privacy could allow you to counter sue since this brought about embarrassment since it is a Porn. Might as well be snooping and yelling to the world what kind of sexual thoughts you have.

Sorry, thinking out loud more than anything but hoping it gives some thoughts towards helping the matter.

quefur

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ CursedFerret

The reason is that people will go around publicly admitting that they download hollywood movies. But you NEVER find anyone who goes around saying that they download pornos. its the taboo of sex.

CursedFerret

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ quefur

true and good point on your post.

quefur

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ CursedFerret

I believe if you search reddit for "Copyright troll case" you come up with several situations like this one.

HathgarNiche

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ quefur

Just to add to the info pool, the porn industry makes all most as much money anally (little joke there tehe) as hollywood does.

quefur

12 years, 8 months ago

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Well shoot. Now they have your IP to your personal computer linked to a questionable adult entertainment site where you confessed your guilt...

Seriously though, I would suggest reading through this thread: http://forum.freeadvice.com/copyrights-trademarks-39/f...

Firedrake1

12 years, 8 months ago

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It would seem to me, on the surface, a simple matter of paying them for the movie and being done with it.

If, on the other hand, you made the movie available for d/ling by others, that might cause a problem with copyright infringement.
IF that can be proven to be the case.

Otherwise, I don't think you have anything to worry about.
I'm not familiar with the law where you live, so I can't really help out very much in that department.

I wish you much luck in this case, but it would do you good to do a bit of legal research into the matter.
Pay particular attention to what, exactly you are being accused of.
There aren't many laws made that don't have legal loopholes as well.

FeatheredAdventures

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ Firedrake1

They have a specific date that the file was downloaded. However I can't remember if it was a torrent or something I got off of megaupload. Surprisingly, the date of the alleged "offense" happened several months ago. I'm not sure if that's going to change anything though.

tokuin

12 years, 8 months ago

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Edited 12 years, 8 months ago by Owner

I was just wondering, did you know what you were downloading before hand or was it just a random porn that you downloaded that turned out to be something made by a studio? Cause I mean if it was just a case where you were looking for random porn and stumbled onto that you could just argue that it wasn't intentional, you would have been satisfied with amateur porn.
Also, if the title was changed, that would also help your case, for example if the title of the movie was "naughty nurses 9" but the file you downloaded was called "hot nurses have sex with patients" than you can say you had no idea it was affiliated. From a legal standpoint that should be more than enough to avoid a charge.

Monkeygrab

12 years, 8 months ago

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I would ask them for the number of the attorney representing the actual studio and maybe make an offer to that person directly to pay for the downloaded material. If the studio is not filing any charges, then I would ignore the threats by your ISP and change providers. without the actual license holder filing charges, your ISP has no grounds to make any case of infringement. they could report your ISP number to the studio, and maybe discontinue service to said ISP number, but that's as far as they can go.

tsmith5143

12 years, 8 months ago

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Did they say what the name of the movie was, and if they did, do you have the movie still on your dad's computer,and if not then they don't really have any evidence to back thier claim.

jay95821

12 years, 8 months ago

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wow talk about bad luck hope you mange to get it worked out
frist time i heard of a porn company coming after some 1 for infringment lol hear about it happing with music and games all the time
and given the issue with your computer i wounder if they some how got acess to your pc
and to be sure it is legit ask for them for the company name and the person name
then contact that company from checking for there phone # 411 or other legit source and speak to them on the phone

FeatheredAdventures

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ jay95821

I've been doing some research on google, porn and independent film companies are getting on the bandwagon and suing people in small groups. It was just bad luck that my name got drawn. And to make matters worse it appears they've been more successful then the RIAA.

HathgarNiche

12 years, 8 months ago

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While i am in no way pleased this happened to you, i do love irony. I cannot give legal advice, but the first thing i would do is find out exactly how they tracked you, and how they know the file you downloaded was actually a paid porn video from their site.

FeatheredAdventures

12 years, 8 months ago

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Edited 12 years, 8 months ago by Owner

@ HathgarNiche

I do love irony too, even when it happens to me I can appreciate it for what it is. The thing is as I've stated in my journal, they don't actually have my name address, just my IP number. My internet provider is going to hand over my information unless I file a motion to have it stopped.

HathgarNiche

12 years, 8 months ago

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did find out what the actual file they claim you have is? there are only 4 billion ip addresses, and many are reused for masking and proxy (though unlikely), it is possible you didn't download what they say you did.

FeatheredAdventures

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ HathgarNiche

The problem is I'd still have to prove that in court. That means they may have to dissect my computer and find out the dates of what was downloaded or deleted. And I don't think it would help my case if it was made public that I helped create a game like "Babysitting Cream". That seems to be the tactic they're using. Some people would rather pay up then face the embarrassment of what they like to fap to on the internet.

HathgarNiche

12 years, 8 months ago

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true, that wold not be something good. Question is, can you get away with something as simple as a little fine, or even just paying for whatever it is they claim was pirated. Maybe if you made the plea to the company in question directly, claim it was not you, and that you would prefer to settle out of court?

Alfador

12 years, 8 months ago

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Wow, talk about guilty until proven innocent--you'd think the burden would be on THEM to prove that you'd downloaded it.

chadevold

12 years, 8 months ago

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Edited 12 years, 8 months ago by Owner

No seriously. It might as well be a scam from some hacker. I have read a couple of cases like yours.
So by all means, Call the isp, and check If they really have a case on you.

And get full info on what they have on you. But dont tell them anything before you are 1000% sure
That they actually have a case on you

cjeam

12 years, 8 months ago

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Hmm, I have no legal training at all and am more familiar with UK copyright law, but I do read about a lot of cases like these.

Either way you're probably going to have to spend money, either asking a lawyer about your options and getting their help in filing a motion to have it stopped, or in paying the rights holder.

A lot of rights holders threaten to sue and ask you to settle out of court to "avoid the embarrassment" specially with porn, course they could still ask you for like a grand. Cos of this sometimes - if your motion to stop your isp giving them the data works or you refuse to settle out of court - they might just give up and go away, if they do decide to fight you in court, well then you're probably screwed, lawsuits take a long time and a lot of money.

You might want to check that the litigant(?) is actually the rights holder, as they have to be, federal courts have said companies can't buy the right to sue from the rights holders, and keep throwing 'Righthaven' out of court for doing this.

If it was me I'd spend the money to ask a lawyer, try and make it look like I'm not going to be an easy target by trying to stop the subpoena and saying I'll fight them in court, and then if they don't give up and the case isn't a shambles pay them as soon as possible.

tl;dr: I know jack shit, but if it was me, make a smokescreen and a fuss, then give up and pay up.

zibi711

12 years, 8 months ago

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ok give me all the reports u have. everything that was said and done. and what you did on your end. what you downloaded and the sights also. i need to know. the exact date if you know it. and i'll get to work on pulling up a defend case if you need it. also. your isp provider if they have a sight i can get to.

as a lot of things that happen. there are also fake emails that get thrown at people. so if you can send me the file or email that they sent u as well and i would be happy to check it to.

sonofdawn

12 years, 8 months ago

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i dont know the most about law but i do know when people are threatening you.Something about this just sounds so fishy, and it seems like they're trying to pressure you into paying them. I dont know whether or not this is true, but until you're sure that it actually happened dont say anymore than you need to. I'd reccomend finding some hard evidence before you make a decision, i mean if they have evidence that you've done this then im sure they can tell you what you watched, or perhaps a screen shot. That will jog your memory if it was real. If it is just a hacker then this will probably scare them off because, they rely on people not wanting their porn to go public. As i said before idont know that much about law, but make sure you get a real opinion, and dont do anything stupid. Good luck xx

zibi711

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ sonofdawn

i find it a bit funny because my mom got a a report online as well. saying she had a worrent out for her arrest and she didnt. even if a lot of it checks out. it could have come from someone else. makeing something false is way to easy now and they would not have just sent an email. you would most likely get it in the mail. or a call. just because its from an email address dosent mean anything because well. you may not use it anymore. and 2ndly thats not a legit way of contacting someone

BunkerBear979

12 years, 8 months ago

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Well, your first mistake was downloading a porn video. There's like millions of amateur ones free out there.

cheken

12 years, 8 months ago

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*googles* Ah here we go... "In mid-July, Yolanda P. opened her mailbox in Visalia, Calif., to find a letter that has been landing in tens of thousands of mailboxes across the country - she was being sued by an adult film company for illegally downloading porn on her computer"

Sound familiar? This was posted just 7 days ago, August 23, 2011. You're one of over 200,000 people being sued by these guys

I'm supposing that they've said it can be settled with between $1500 and $2000 or be fought out in court with your name being linked to downloading pornography?

It seems like you could win or lose depending on your area... One judge in Chicago was for the lawsuit and said that even if it was just supposed evidence their identities should be known dull stop whereas other judges have downright refused cases on a mass scale (however these were ones where the company tried to sue 1700 people in one hearing and a whopping 23000 people in DC in just a single hearing!)

The funny thing is they've ended up trying to sue peoople that just don't have a computer or even worse are dead!

My advice would be get in contact with your ISP, see if they have been asked about your information and then make sure they withold it. There are lawyers in Britain that have been stripped of their rights to be lawyers for this sort of thing and yet here we have the great US law system doing what it does best, fucking people over.

A quote from someone in the UK: In a world where not everybody locks their WiFi and where anybody can hack a personal internet account quite easily, these practices are quite scary. The porn industry is also sueing an 88 year old women who doesn't even know how to use email and won't back down.

I myself don't know much about the American law system (except that just like any law system there are so many loopholes it's rediculous) but if they do end up getting your info... Counter sue for extortion/blackmail

P.S. Not sure if I'm allowed to post the link to what I was reading but if you are interested then PM me

zibi711

12 years, 8 months ago

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on side note about 50% of anyone that knows the internet well can get that exact info. the only diff is. if it was fake. like i said befor. he said it came off his dads email account since he was using it.. not by post so if it is by email its more of a scam. if by post then there is a difference and yes you can counter sue. because even if they have your info they cant give it to anyone without your consent. invasion of privacy. and a few other things out there that i know. and yes there are millions of loopholes in our system. i mean how do you think that a guy who can spill hot coffee after geting it from Mc'D sues them because he spills it on himself. because of no warning. i mean ok yes it should have been there but common since should tell you. hey this dam thing it frekin hot. sigh. sometimes i think our country is more fucked up than others

cheken

12 years, 8 months ago

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I would say they are using the email on the notion they used it to collect said pornography. However, I think the fact that they're trying to even get dead people and people that don't have access to the internet just shows how little they care about who they sue. They just want money and it's blaringly obvious that "wanting to stop the mass torrents" is just an excuse for them to try and make millions more out of people. I mean... A single hearing for 23,000 people? If a judge accepted that it's just screaming "BENT JUDGE"

You heard of John Steele? He's being called steele the pirate hunter (or something like that). Based in Washington or something I belive and is one of the lawyers who takes pleasure in doing this. Why? It makes him money and he doesn't give a fuck who is losing out... People like that make me sick.

The moment I see something like this I'm just clicking the select box and adding it to my spam. Though if they think the US law system can make me, who lives in the UK, cough up money they are having a laugh

zibi711

12 years, 8 months ago

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well with all notions XD even by email. its faulty and cant be used against you. they would have to have full proof so that they can say that you got it. because you got an email means hey im going to delete it. and even if you do that. they cant say anything because its your personl info. and they cant give your email address to anyone without your consent

cheken

12 years, 8 months ago

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Makes me remember a few of the good ones a while back. You heard of the mayor of Batman City sueing Warner Bros? Was talked about in 2009 and nobody from the city could state why it took from 1939 till then to file a lawsuit.

How about the man who sued a woman because she wouldn't sleep with him?

Or the man who suied gis employyer because they didn't stop him raping them?

This is just one that will be going on that list of stupid lawsuits. The company that sued over 200,000 people for 'allegedly' downloading their porn illegally including people that had no internet and people that were dead

zibi711

12 years, 8 months ago

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Edited 12 years, 8 months ago by Owner

lol and yea i do remember those like i said our system is so messed up that it makes me wounder if its run by complete morons

cheken

12 years, 8 months ago

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Meant to reply to this but my internet rebooted and it ended up not replying :(

zibi711

12 years, 8 months ago

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lol its cool lol. happens to me as well much of the time XD

zibi711

12 years, 8 months ago

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as for john steel. nope lol. and wouldn't hurt me regardless. i know my ways around and know the privacy rights. XD i usualy have to read the fine print. but either way im sure i can find loop holes in almost anything. all i have to do is check up on it and im sure i can find something. thats just how i work XD im bored i got lots of time. and i spend most of it on here. what do u expect lol

cheken

12 years, 8 months ago

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From the site I was reading about this:
Texas, West Virginia and Chicago, where the primary architect of the strategy, lawyer John Steele, is based. The adult entertainment industry has dubbed Steele the "Pirate Slayer."

Steele calls the lawsuits a simple defense against copyright theft.

"Our clients," Steele said, "are losing millions of dollars from people stealing their movies. They should get their money back from thieves."

Obviously he should get money for getting that money back as well I'm sure...

zibi711

12 years, 8 months ago

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like i said born identity they cant sure you for the same thing if you get it off of youtube
they cant do it if you get it off of a sight that is to share it.
so who is to say that he is right?
lots of loop holes. like i said lol.
i can find more.

zibi711

12 years, 8 months ago

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and as for steel. he picks on people who either have no idea about the law or how it works.
he picks on those that. are just oblivious and makes money off of them because he knows he can do it
a song is copy protected but hundreds of them are downloaded every day.
and in any case all i hear it from is movies. i dont hear anything about music. so from the right person it wont be a sturdy case

PrincePorn

12 years, 8 months ago

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Just going to point out, Site (like Website. Meaning "Location"), not Sight (Like Eyesight, meaning "to see or observe").

Hope all goes well and that not too much money (if any) is needed to be payed. (Haven't read past here yet, a bit late to the party!)

zibi711

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ PrincePorn

yea i noticed that but was a bit late to fix it. when i type at times i type to fast to realize what i just did. XD but i know the difference

xheris

12 years, 8 months ago

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I heard about this on the Radio it's a phishing scam. Pretty much the porn company sends letters too a bunch of people threatening them most with no real evidence hoping they'll pay out of court. Most Judges who give it some thought shouldn't let it go to court.

AlexanderBrashford

12 years, 8 months ago

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Edited 12 years, 8 months ago by Owner

I heard of this several times now.  I need to ask a few questions to figure this out.

Did the letter actually come from your ISP?  The envelope and letter would have a few key details to tell you this if it is really from them.

Secondly, why is the ISP even getting involved?  Are they being paid by the porn company to threaten their own CUSTOMERS?  That is the biggest red flag I see here every time I read one of these "threats".  Why would they get in the middle like this?  It can not be good business for them to potentially lose customers like this.

Finally, is the return address from the ISP an official address they use?  If it is not, then this is just an empty threat.  I saved over 50 people thousands of dollars each just because of that alone.

EDIT:  Okay I read a bit more into this.  From a legal and ethical standpoint, your ISP should not be doing this at all.  If they give out personal information to any other company to get a profit from it, it is 100% illeagal!

So from the looks of this, this seems real fake to me.  Then again, you did not provide what ISP is doing this, or any other info that would be rather pertinent for a lawyer to know (ie returning mailing address, the ISP provider company name...)

FeatheredAdventures

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ AlexanderBrashford

I'm looking up the sending address. These document were sent to my dad by UPS and look legit. My ISP (which I'm not comfortable saying out loud because it is a monopoly in this state easily revealing my location) isn't being payed by the porn company for my information. The documents claim that the information is being Subpoena by the porn company and that they have to give up the information by September 26. I have my options, everyone has been really helpful so far and I appreciate it greatly. ^v^

zibi711

12 years, 8 months ago

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what is the company you go through for your internet?

IrishWolf

12 years, 8 months ago

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I got a certified letter through FedEx. Included in the envelope was a cashier's check for $5000 (it was supposedly payment for the Harley I was selling). I took it to the bank and the bank held it for 3 days because it was an out of state check, then cashed it. Almost a month after it was cashed, and I had spent it, the bank notified me that the check was counterfeit.

Yeah, the scammer(s) fooled the bank. The bank found out it was a scam after trying to get the money from the issuing bank, whch was a real bank. Needless to say, scammers are getting really crafty these days... I'm not saying that your situation is a scam, but it's sending up red flags to a LOT of people so it's worth looking into.

zibi711

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ AlexanderBrashford

XD already stated that lol
its a scam. invasion of privacy
and they have to have your consent to do so

kenni08

12 years, 8 months ago

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wow this is a deep one you stepped into. I've also bee in this situation and it didn't end pretty. Hmm lets see. They have the your IP address and , unless you tell your ISP not to, they will have your information as well. I believe this is what I got from that. Either way they got you good and wont give up till they get something out of you, as you feared. Well I have a lot of advice for that but its a lot to type here and a lot of steps that need to be taken. Not only that but posting that here, on the internet, is bound to draw attention. (being that it will start showing up in web searches and such. So here's what I'll do. pm me and ill give you my number. I can tell you basically all I know about this matter to prevent as much possible wallet burn as possible.

Netreek

12 years, 8 months ago

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This sort is nothing new, sadly so to say. They write to random people, saying that you did something forbidden, like downloaded an illigal copy of music, porn, selling stuff you are not allowed to aso. If you write that persons name in GOOGLE you find out that this guy is actually known for such stunts and shouldn't be answered to at all. You shall download a movie from this pornsite without paying? How shall that be possible in the first place? You actually CAN'T download a movie from the ORIGINAL website without hacking. And why doing something stupid like this, if actually about 100-200 people provide this very same movie for free on something like MU or RS or whatever. Believe me. These people are not from your Internet Provider. or what do you read here: BIizzard with Li or BIizzard with ii? just look carefully at EVERY single detail who sent it to you. nothing but scam and fakes.

cheken

12 years, 8 months ago

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*cough* Nixon *cough* Bush *cough* *ahem* Sorry seem to have a bit of a nasty cough here

joecrum

12 years, 8 months ago

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you should call a local attorney an ask for some free advice but i would think the people that have it to download would be liable unless you gave it to others an if you didn't it shouldn't be more than the price of what ever you downloaded if they can get monetary gain out of this it shouldn't be more than they are out of pocket an this is my two cents an don't download movies watch them an delete them never leave a trail to be followed

crackerspawn

12 years, 8 months ago

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from what i read so far, here is the problem.. there was no way for you to know this file was specifically from a pay site, right? whether from a torrent or megaupload, those sites don't TELL you that this file or that file is illegal. therefore you had no way of knowing you were committing a crime. the company performing this suit should be pursuing the site that you downloaded it from. unless the video itself had a visible tag from the original site, there is no way for them to prove that you had any idea this file required payment in order to own it. the best advice on here so far... take this to a lawyer. it'll prolly cost less than paying what they want.

rudneve

12 years, 8 months ago

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Definitely get in touch with your ISP and find out if they actually did send you this letter.

someonelost

12 years, 8 months ago

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Feather... I have no legal advice but i will give you my 2cent for w/e its worth:

first thing about the internet is that you can never pinpoint ANYTHING with an IP.

I am on a laptop using someone else's internet that i ummm "got*winkwink*" with a MASKED MODEM NUMBER >>MAC ADDRESS. the Ip changes with every reset, or i can do it manually and yes i am using windows (XP)

while i also managed to "got" this internet on my desktop, i entered it with a wireless card that looks just like your ETHERNET card(where you plug the fat telephone looking wire into you PC) that i DID NOT mask the "MAC" or IP BUT it is a disposable CARD( if you dont mind loosing 40$) that i can get rid of anytime i please.

now lets say i play cream game and they start busting, they will go after the ROOT of the connection meaning the poor fella that i "got" from and even then when they see that it was not his MAC or IP. they would be in a very tight spot and mostly give up trying to look for the culprit. For that always use laptops and when you are using PCs make sure you use wireless and are always masked/cloaked/whatever...

you never know lets say you had wireless around your house and i come near it. I will "got" (lol) into your internet and download that porn flick, then all the fire is on you and i walk away fapping.

Also I feel for you... living in the UK is ...welll....CHAVS ... and the laws are .... well you get taxed for TV right?(maybe not)

Best bet for you is to change your HD and Motherboard, buy yourself a wireless card , buy a 4gig usb stick and put backtrack5 LIVE on it, use truecrypt, use TOR for your online affairs if your on a desktop, buy a flash HD (80gigs should be enough), get with the times and STREAM porn>only old people download.

Did i miss anything...? Oh legally play the victim and "the goodboy", if you are a "visible minority" then you have the law on your side if you play the victim part(ask your lawyer about it, you can get away with rape,murder etc...).If you really have no other way out but to pay a sick 250 000$ fee for the film then talk to your dad and dump everything on him, parents have to have a purpose in their lifes and if raising you was their only goal then tell them to think again. Send them to the house and let the old dogs weather it out, you may be a pervert but you have talent and it would be of better use outside of prison.

Sorry for all the gibberish my mind is all over the place today... stressful evening but if you want some tech help to be a bit more secure online then give me a pm i will be more then happy to help. Also Cremas bikiny could be just a tab bit tighter.

=)

Someoneverylost

lorddeox

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ someonelost

Just because you have someone's IP doesn't mean you can actually pinpoint a specific person. I know that my ISP shares my IP with quite a few people as my IP has been blocked on some sites for (seemingly) no reason, or at least nothing I was responsible for.

F8bekons

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ someonelost

+1 ^

Lolcat61

12 years, 8 months ago

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well im not a layer ( hell i even had to use spell check to spell layer right)

the closest i got was a GCSE course in law.
but i would ask them how they came to suspect you of illegally downloading the video, because if they hacked into your computer then all there evidence could be dismissive as they could have placed it the and its not difficult to download something today and change the date to 3 weeks ago.

gintsu

12 years, 8 months ago

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Edited 12 years, 8 months ago by Owner

It's a door way scam i saw something on the news just like this in fact it was the same words and claimed a 70 year old grand mother did the same thing it's known as a doorway scam i live in Arizona and this was on the news a few months back same thing word bye word the letter you got is almost the same as the 1 the 70 year old did A 70-year-old grandmother, who was being sued for downloading pornography, said “It smacks of extortion.”
It is thought that there is something fishy about the lawsuit against tens of thousands of internet users who are allegedly said to have downloaded copyrighted files.
Over the past several months, the United States law firm, Steele Hansmeier PLLC, has gone after BitTorrent users with alarming ruthlessness, demanding cash settlements for illegally downloaded files and threatening penalties of up to $150,000 for those who take the case to court.
The aim of the supposedly copyright holders, is not to take any of the defendants to court, but to get these infringers to pay a substantial cash settlement, so as to make the legal action disappear. The Chicago law firm that has sent out notices to nearly 100 people, strongly suggesting that they settle for thousands of dollars or face much more serious fines and penalties — and risk public humiliation.
These settlements can vary from $3,000-12,000. While the goal of curbing Internet piracy is a worthwhile one, this particular case sounds less like lawyers coming up with effective ways to protect copyrighted material and more like lawyers terrifying people into giving them $3,000 a time. These particular lawyers appear to be completely indifferent to claims of innocence, like this 70-year-old grandmother. She refused to pay the settlement fee and told them that she had never even heard of BitTorrent.
Perhaps some of those accused may have downloaded the files. However it is believed that some felt pressured to settle, even though they were innocent.
In her defence, the elderly grandmother said she didn’t know whether her wireless internet was password protected or not, but she did have a handful of young men living next door.
Steele slammed this defence, accusing owners of unprotected wireless service of wild irresponsibility. He said anyone who fails to secure their Wi-Fi is responsible for any subsequent crimes.
Steele has been claimed by the adult film industry as a ‘pirate slayer’, for his intense pursuit of illegal downloaders. He claims his software tracks down what he says is public information about BitTorrent users, including their IP address. He then takes the IP address to a federal judge, asking to connect the IP to a name.
His firm then sends the person a letter informing them of fines of tens of thousands of dollars. The letter then goes on to offer the alleged criminal a way out, ‘If you act promptly you will avoid being named as a Defendant in the lawsuit sound familiar ?

gintsu

12 years, 8 months ago

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The 70 year old grand mother contacted the news and they left her alone im not sure if you want to go through all that tho

frogstune

12 years, 8 months ago

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Edited 12 years, 8 months ago by Owner

Take your time with this, and think through each options that others have mentioned. Don't rush anything or sign anything to quickly. Ask questions, and see if you can't turn the tables on them. Did they tell you what product of theirs you had downloaded? Ask them how they got the information. If they were the ones that posted this and had it monitored for when someone downloads it, isn't that like entrapment? Get as much details as possible. Call them if you have too, just be mindful of what you say.
If anything, to stop something like this, they should be going to the source and suing websites that allow people to download such content. Or finding ways to backtrack uploaded content from said websites.

ventas123

12 years, 8 months ago

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Edited 12 years, 8 months ago by Owner

From my understanding it seems that Comcast was named as part of a subpoena to get names/info for a mass-suit. Assuming that it is a mass-suit, I would suggest filing not only a motion to quash the subpoena, but also a motion to dismiss yourself from the case on either personal jurisdiction grounds or improper joinder grounds (you can argue they can't lump your cases together just because you allegedly downloaded the same movie, each circumstance is different and you have the right to try your case separately).

If you get your case dismissed from the mass-suit, you could still be sued on an individual basis, but at that point I don't think it is worth it for the porn company.

I would highly suggest that you at least consult someone that practices law in your state, you probably don't /need/ to hire a lawyer yet, since you can most likely fill out the motions on your own (If you call your courthouse the judges office should be able to help you fill those motions), but I think consulting with a lawyer would probably give you the best chance of beating this thing.

Btw I'm only starting law school so don't make decisions just based off of what I said, seriously the safest play is to at least talk with a lawyer.

PS Like I said I don't know my stuff 100% so I did some research and found: http://forum.freeadvice.com/computers-software-interne... and it says what I said but just better, I hope it helps.

PPS If you were on your parents internet they are probably the ones that will be named if there is a suit.

ventas123

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ ventas123

Sorry for the double post I ran out of time. I was going to say that you can't file motions for your parents bc you can't represent them legally. Also technically speaking you can't even write the motions for them either (though no one can prove anything).

ButtercupSaiyan

12 years, 8 months ago

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Wow ... I can't believe a porn studio would do this ... O_o;; Makes me wonder about places that aggregate clips and crap for free.

joecrum

12 years, 8 months ago

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porn companies are are losing money hand over fist so there trying this to make up for poor sales but going after the customer isn't the best option but no one wanted to watch old guys screwing failed actresses forever or if they did it wasn't worth the money they charge i think they should start making real movies but with like two hours worth of sex an two hours worth of story an maybe aim for hire class of actress like stripers lol sorry for your luck though maybe they could hire you to put games on there dvd babysiting cream could work as a dvd game or less copyrited images lol best of luck with all of it

joecrum

12 years, 8 months ago

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SAN JOSE, Calif. -- In mid-July, Yolanda P. opened her mailbox in Visalia, Calif., to find a letter that has been landing in tens of thousands of mailboxes across the country -- she was being sued by an adult film company for illegally downloading porn on her computer.

These allegations of porn piracy are now part of a torrent of legal battles unfolding coast-to-coast in an explosion of copyright lawsuits filed over the past year. From Silicon Valley to Washington, D.C., adult filmmakers are unleashing their lawyers in federal courts to sue John and Jane Does for stealing porn and sharing it on an increasingly porn-happy Internet.

Duplicating in many ways the music industry's ill-fated campaign a few years ago to stem music file sharing, the adult film world has now sued more than 200,000 initially anonymous defendants nationwide in an attempt to track down and punish those who illegally download porn movies with titles such as "A Punk Rock Orgy in the Woods" and "Dexxxter." The lawsuits name "Doe" defendants until they can unearth the identities of those accused of downloading porn through their Internet providers.

The legal campaign has hit federal courts particularly hard in the Bay Area, where the porn industry has lawyers and favors tech savvy local federal judges, as well as, Texas, West Virginia and Chicago, where the primary architect of the strategy, lawyer John Steele, is based. The adult entertainment industry has dubbed Steele the "Pirate Slayer."

Steele calls the lawsuits a simple defense against copyright theft.

"Our clients," Steele said, "are losing millions of dollars from people stealing their movies. They should get their money back from thieves."

But critics, led by the San Francisco-based Electronic Frontier Foundation, say the industry is abusing the court system by casting a wide net that ends with menacing letters to embarrassed targets who'd rather cut a check than fight back and be identified in court as someone who may have downloaded porn.

"The intent of these lawsuits is to get peoples' identifying information and attempt to extort settlements out of them," said Corynne McSherry, EFF's intellectual property director.

The so-called "mass copyright" cases all follow the same format: an adult film company sues scores of anonymous defendants, alleging a particular movie was pirated using the popular file sharing technology BitTorrent. The number of defendants can be staggering, dwarfing the scope of the music industry's lawsuits; there were 2,100 Does named in one recent San Jose case, and 23,000 in the largest thus far in Washington, D.C.

The end game for the porn industry's lawyers is to identify Does and send them letters, such as the one sent to Yolanda P., who was tracked down through her Comcast account, according to court papers. These letters notify people they can settle for anywhere from $1,500 to $2,500, or fight it out in court and have their names linked to downloading porn.

Most of these people do not want to pay lawyers to fight. But in some instances, judges have invited groups such as EFF to jump in and raise arguments against allowing the cases to proceed on such a mass scale and to prevent the industry's lawyers from securing e-mail account information. Just last week, EFF, at the invitation of a San Francisco judge, argued in a legal brief that the "dragnet" approach to suing violates due process rights in a case against more than 5,000 anonymous defendants accused of pirating the movie "Danielle Staub Raw."

Thus far, both sides can claim some legal victories. Earlier this month, a Chicago federal judge refused to dismiss one of the cases, rejecting arguments the Does have a right to keep their identities confidential when there "appear to be meritorious copyright infringement claims."

But other judges have tossed out lawsuits, including the case in Washington involving the 23,000 defendants. San Jose U.S. Magistrate Judge Paul Grewal recently expressed concern in an ord

joecrum

12 years, 8 months ago

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"That may have fizzled, but it made people at the margins nervous about file sharing," said Mark Lemley, director of Stanford University's Law, Science and Technology program. With the porn industry's lawsuits, he added, "People are going to think twice about doing this."

(c)2011 San Jose Mercury News (San Jose, Calif.)

Visit San Jose Mercury News (San Jose, Calif.) at www.mercurynews.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services

cjeam

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ joecrum

"(c)2011 San Jose Mercury News (San Jose, Calif.)"

You....you do realise what you just did there right?

Oh sweet sweet irony go easy on me.

Alfador

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ cjeam

What? Googled an article on the topic from some random newspaper across the country?

joecrum

12 years, 8 months ago

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But according to John Steele, one of the lawyers representing the adult-film industry, "For this kind of downloading there are no little guys. Everyone is doing it together."

joecrum

12 years, 8 months ago

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Judge Slams Copyright Troll Lawyer John Steele's Latest 'Fishing Expedition'
from the another-one-down dept
The mass infringement lawsuit shakedown plan is looking shakier and shakier these days as more and more courts keep hitting back on these cases. More and more judges (with one notable exception) are recognizing that these lawyers are just using the court system to pressure people into paying up... and they don't seem to like it very much. The latest involves Chicago divorce lawyer-turned-porn P2P shakedown lawyer, John Steele. Steele has already had some trouble with judges buying his arguments. Steele is also the guy trying to set these lawsuits up as reverse class actions -- a strategy that failed miserably the first time around.

However, despite that loss, Steele has tried again for another reverse class action. Earlier, the judge denied Steele's motion for expedited discovery. Expedited discovery is a pretty standard thing that almost every court grants as a matter of course, but we've now seen a few courts in these mass infringement lawsuits refuse, after realizing the only purpose behind expedited discovery is to get the names/addresses of people in order to hit them up with settlement offers. In this case, the judge specifically ordered the court clerk not to issue subpoenas in the case, to stop Steele from getting the info he needed to pressure people into settling. Steele still pushed forward, trying to get the court to approve things so he could send out the subpoenas and get the names.

But the judge is having none of it.

In an incredibly short, but clearly well-thought out response (pdf) to Steele, Judge Harold Baker, makes it clear that he wants no part of this. First, he points out that IP addresses do not match up well with individuals, and even points to the recent story of a home being raided for child porn due to an open WiFi router, to highlight that an IP address does not show who's actually doing the downloading:
Moreover, VPR ignores the fact that IP subscribers are not necessarily copyright infringers. Carolyn Thompson writes in an MSNBC article of a raid by federal agents on a home that was linked to downloaded child pornography. The identity and location of the subscriber were provided by the ISP. The desktop computer, iPhones, and iPads of the homeowner and his wife were seized in the raid. Federal agents returned the equipment after determining that no one at the home had downloaded the illegal material. Agents eventually traced the downloads to a neighbor who had used multiple IP subscribers’ Wi-Fi connections (including a secure connection from the State University of New York). See Carolyn Thompson, Bizarre Pornography Raid Underscores Wi-Fi Privacy Risks (April 25, 2011), http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/42740201/ns/technology_and...

The list of IP addresses attached to VPR’s complaint suggests, in at least some instances, a similar disconnect between IP subscriber and copyright infringer. The ISPs include a number of universities, such as Carnegie Mellon, Columbia, and the University of Minnesota, as well as corporations and utility companies. Where an IP address might actually identify an individual subscriber and address the correlation is still far from perfect, as illustrated in the MSNBC article. The infringer might be the subscriber, someone in the subscriber’s household, a visitor with her laptop, a neighbor, or someone parked on the street at any given moment.
But, much more importantly, Judge Baker notes the serious fear of chilling effects from these lawsuits, pressuring people to settle even if they are innocent, and even calls out one of Steele's other cases, where Steele has dropped a bunch of defendants who settled. While that may have been good for Steele at the time, Judge Baker uses it to point out that this appears to be Steele's business model, rather than a real legal situation, and he sees no reason to help Steele out in this fishing expedition t

joecrum

12 years, 8 months ago

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“fishing expedition by means of a perversion of the purpose and intent” of class actions.

joecrum

12 years, 8 months ago

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ok after research this is a legal scam that gets money then who doesn't pay gets let go so so i suggest don't pay

joecrum

12 years, 8 months ago

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cause it a makes a mockery of the judge an his court room

joecrum

12 years, 8 months ago

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didn't notice it the first time but he a troll to now only if someone suggested a troll killing army hmmm...

Ethinolicbob

12 years, 8 months ago

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Stuff like that is happening here in New Zealand too. During our last lot of major earthquakes the politicians snuck a law through that allowed copyright holders to contact ISP's and obligated ISP's to hand out infringement notices. The penalties aren't high but they can ban our access to the internet and signing up with ISP's within the country.

dragonboy89

12 years, 8 months ago

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First you need to contact you ISP provider over phone, and confirm that they sent the letter/e-mail. Cause there is alot of scam's out there, that could be involved with you downloading that porn movie file, if you downloaded it. Also what is your ISP provider cause i have never heard of any ISP providers that do this. Not even bigname providers would do this cause it would cost them more money to do this than they would gain so check out if its truly them who sent you the letter.

thezenfrog

12 years, 8 months ago

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After reading through all the comments carefully, this is the course of action I recommend that you take:

1. Read through all the letters and e-mails you have received, and look for the names of the parties listed as being directly involved with this suit.
2. Do research on these parties to see what their legitimacy is.
3. Legal Consultation(You're probably going to need this, so you may as well get it.)
4. If you are using BitTorrent, STOP! As really cool as BitTorrent is for file sharing, it's getting a lot of people in trouble. Plus, this leaves the door open for another group to sue if you've downloaded any other media from there.
That is probably your best course of action, so I wish you the best of luck, and god speed.

FeatheredAdventures

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ thezenfrog

That's pretty much my plan. I actually had stopped using bitTorrent about a month ago since I started having this bad feeling about it. In the end I'm probably going to talk to a paralegal in my city and then talk to a lawyer if necessary. I'm going to lose money over this no matter what but I think I can keep the costs down if I play my cards right.

DrakeTLD

12 years, 8 months ago

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Hopefully you can. Unless there is actual copyright infringement it should be pretty quick. Hope all turns out well for you.

mach1flyer

12 years, 8 months ago

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uhh Funny thing is i know where you because you talked about your natural disasters xD.

I have never heard of an ISP being involved with porn industries before, like the other guys. I know that MAJOR companies have asked ISPs to get in contact with the people, and the ISPs would tell the users that if they had not DELETED THE MOVIE within a certain amount of time (since the movie contained a tracking bug they would know if it was deleted or not) They would SUSPEND that persons Internet... NOT turn them over to be judged in a court of law..

FeatheredAdventures

12 years, 8 months ago

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@ mach1flyer

My ISP has been hit with a subpoena though. They kind of have no choice to turn my name over unless I file a motion to have it stopped. In past cases they have turned names over for cash, but that was considered illegal and grounds for a lawsuit. Same with them capping someone's internet for downloading off bitTorrent, my ex and I actually took part in a lawsuit for that and got about $12 for it in a refund. Also, I've never really made is a secret that I live on the east coast of the US, I just haven't really specified where exactly I live. ^v^

mach1flyer

12 years, 8 months ago

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