File Sharing?

Question

I have been a e-mule user for at least 3 years now..I have downloaded many softwares, movies, and games in the past.
Now my local cable company whom I have internet service with keeps calling me and tell me what movies, games and software that I am downloading and they even tell me where it is on my hard drive and ask me to remove it or I will get a $10,000 fine and will lose my internet for life...What ever happing to file-sharing? Fair use?
The cable company said that If I didn't pay for it, then I should not download it. So if my neighbor buys a movie, I can not watch it or copy it for him?
But the main guestion is this, why are they able to look thur my hard drive, Do I have any privacy? I thought the police needs to get a warrent from a judge to search your home or anything else?
Where is this country (USA) coming to today. I hope this don't fall under the Patriot Act?
I bet the people in Russia is laughing at us now.

Answer 1

If your internet provider is threatening you with a fine, then you really need to contact an attorney. Since the cable company holds no copyright on the material that you've downloaded, they cannot fine you for it. In fact, no one can fine you without taking you to court, which first requires a Cease & Desist order. As for the privacy aspect, I'd make it public what the company is doing. This has been embarrassing to providers in the past and they stopped doing it. Another alternative is to install a hardware firewall, such as a router which informs you when your computer is being probed.

Millions of dollars are being spent on both sides of the file-sharing issue and currently the copyright holders, being huge corporations, can outspend individual consumers to lobby lawmakers over to their side.

Answer 2

Most file sharing is willful copyright violation, and the statutory penalties can be as high as $145,000 per instance.

File-sharing is not fair use. Fair use refers to using small parts of a work for educational, parody or non-commercial entertainment purposes. It is a very limited exception to the copyright laws, and has never allowed for general copying and distribution of copyrighted works.

Yes, police need a warrant to look through your home or computer. But if you downloaded files through an internet provider, your computer passed certain information to that provider as part of the request. Most computer user keep the same default directories for downloads ("My Music", "My eBooks", "My Videos"), etc. So, they don't have too look through your hard drive if you just put it in the default location.

The bottom line is that copyright violation is illegal. If a work is privately owned, and you have not purchased a license to make copies (or to distribute it, in the case of file sharing) then that's federal copyright violation.

The cable company (likely acting on behalf of the copyright holders) are giving you a chance to avoid prosecution by deleting the material. That's like robbing a jewelry store, and the DA saying they won't prosecute if you give it back.

Answer 3

they dont have a right, they need a search warrant as stated in the 4th Amendment. But heres my advice, go out to any store (eg. Target or Best Buy or Circuit City etc) and buy an 80 gb flash drive. Then transfer all of your stuff from ur hardrive of ur computer onto the flash drive. Finally wipe out everything on ur computer hardrive and when they check thell find nothin.

Answer 4

Fight the power!!!!.......contact an attorney and expose the cable company publicly for their violation of your privacy......also go to Comp USA and buy yourself an external hard drive and save everything there......when you are not using the external hard drive unplug it.