Everybody's doing it: downloading music and sharing files. People who share music files on
Internet argue that downloading is legal; today they can be sued by record industry. Can one be sued without a great intrusion into personal lives of an individual?1. Enjoy music downloads from safe and legal sources. Get facts and not scare tactics, about online music services.
2. The prosecution has to able to prove, with adequate evidence, that IP address used for music downloads can be linked to person accused of illegal content sharing. There is a growing concern for "privacy". Legal experts worry about "intrusiveness" of Internet monitoring in order to prove a court case.
3. These IP address--numbers--given to user by ISPs are dynamic and change rapidly. The starting point is to establish that there is enough bona fide evidence to prosecute.
4. It is difficult to a pin an IP address on any one person. The IP numbers that some ISPs assign to their users can change from one "session" to next. The music industry must be able to link file-sharers to specific IP addresses at times those addresses were used for file sharing.
5. Since their are personal freedoms involved, courts want to make sure that individual is revealed to public.
6. These copyright allegation lawsuits are a minefield, because they involve personal information of defendant.
7. In Canada, under its privacy laws, people are protected through court confidentiality orders. In United States, Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) must get a order to reveal downloader's identity.
