Copyright Infringement
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What It Is
Copyright infringement is the unlawful use of any material protected under copyright law, violating one or more of the copyright owner’s exclusive rights. These exclusive rights include, but are not limited to: reproduction of the work, the distribution of copies of the work and the creation of derivative forms of the work.
What It Means
Downloading and sharing files which contain copyrighted material is against the law. A single unauthorized download or upload of copyrighted material can put you at serious risk for criminal consequences such as fines and imprisonment. The responsibility to restrict sharing and monitor the legality of your downloads lies solely with you.
What To Know
The University of Massachusetts Amherst does not monitor your Internet connection. Copyright violations do not originate from UMass Amherst or the Office of Information Technologies (OIT).
If you are suspected of a copyright violation, a DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) complaint is sent to the University from the copyright holder or a designated agent. Using the IP address listed on the complaint, OIT will inform you directly of the alleged infringement and disable your network connection.
In most cases, the suspension of your network connection is not permanent. In order to reconnect to the UMass network, you must sign an acknowledgment that you have received a Notice of Copyright Violation and return it to the OIT Help Desk (A109 LGRC).
In some cases, the copyright holder will offer a settlement option before pursuing any legal action. This is referred to as an Early Settlement Letter. We recommend contacting Student Legal Services or a private lawyer to seek legal counsel at this point.
During the 2006 – 2007 school year, over 1400 members of the UMass community received notices of copyright violations and at least 63 students received Early Settlement Letters. The minimum damages for sharing copyrighted material is $750 per file. On average, violators who choose to settle their cases outside of court have been forced to pay about $4000.
What You Can Do to Avoid a Copyright Violation
- Download all music, movie and other types of files from authorized sites.
- Turn off file sharing in your peer-to-peer application.
- Keep your computer password protected and never share your OIT account information with anyone.
- Do not connect personal wireless routers to the campus network. For more information, see OIT's Wireless Airspace Policy.
