CyberLaw Blog

Archive for February 22nd, 2009

Post from: TorrentFreak

FBI Tracks Down Oscars BitTorrent Uploaders

Two Californian men have been charged with uploading leaked copies of Oscar-nominated Hollywood movies to the Internet.

According to the U.S. attorney’s office, yesterday a federal grand jury indicted Derek Hawthorne of Moorpark and Owen Moody of San Marcos on federal copyright violation charges.

Hawthorne is charged with uploading ‘Australia’ to a torrent site known as Movie Hogs and ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’ to Demonoid.com. Moody is charged with uploading the hit movie ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ to The Pirate Bay.

The pair have been contacted by the FBI who ordered them to surrender to authorities next week. The charges are ‘Uploading a copyrighted work being prepared for commercial distribution’ which is a term under the tough Family Entertainment and Copyright Act, previously used to jail Star Wars uploaders at the now-defunct EliteTorrents site.

They face a possible punishment of three years in jail and fines of $250,000.

Authorities also arrested a third man last week. Jack Yates of Porter Ranch, an employee at a Los Angeles duplication company, is accused of illegally copying the movie ‘The Love Guru’. Yates was asked to copy the movie by Paramount so that Jay Leno could show a clip on his show but allegedly he also made a copy for himself which he passed to friends, one of which uploaded the movie to the Internet.

It’s alleged that Yates lied to the FBI so he faces stiffer punishment than the previously mentioned pair. The offense of copying the movie carries a sentence of up to a year in jail but for lying to the authorities he could get five years. He is scheduled to be arraigned March 16 2009.

The IWF: Charity disparity?: “

Pinning down who’s really being protected

The Internet Watch Foundation is under fire again, this time on the grounds that it shouldn’t be classed as a charity. The challenge comes from a Yorkshire-based software developer, who spoke with The Register on condition that we respect his confidentiality.…

“

(Via The Register – Public Sector.)

Ruling: Gov reports into ID scheme must be disclosed: “

But with names deleted

The Information Tribunal has ruled that Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests for internal government reports into the cost-effectiveness and feasibility of the planned National ID Card scheme should be granted. The reports in question, thought to be critical of the ID scheme, have thus far been withheld.…

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(Via The Register – Public Sector.)

Congress mulls stringent data retention rules: “

Two-year logs for ISPs, hotspots, even homes

US politicians have proposed legislation that would oblige both ISPs and people running Wi-Fi hotspots to keep access logs for two years.…

“

(Via The Register – Public Sector.)

California ban on violent video games killed on appeal: “

Violent material protected. Porn? Not so much

A California federal appeals court on Friday ruled that a state law criminalizing the sale of violent video games to children is a violation of the right to free speech.…

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(Via The Register – Public Sector.)

U2 No Line on the Horizon album on Pirate Bay file sharing site: “U2’s long-awaited new album has been leaked online and is being downloaded by
thousands of fans on the file sharing site Pirate Bay.”

(Via Tech and Web from Times Online.)

EUROJUST: “The Hague, 20 February 2009

Eurojust coordinates internet telephony investigations

Ms Carmen Manfredda, acting National Member for Italy, will take the lead in coordinating a Europe-wide investigation on internet telephony (VoIP).

At the request of Direzione Nazionale Antimafia in Rome, the Italian Desk at Eurojust will play a key role in the coordination and cooperation of the investigations on the use of internet telephony systems (VoIP), such as ‘Skype’. Eurojust will be available to assist all European law enforcement and prosecution authorities in the Member States. The purpose of Eurojust’s coordination role is to overcome the technical and judicial obstacles to the interception of internet telephony systems, taking into account the various data protection rules and civil rights.
Background
Criminals in Italy are increasingly making phone calls over the internet in order to avoid getting caught through mobile phone intercepts. Police officers in Milan say organised crime, arms and drugs traffickers, and prostitution rings are turning to Skype and other systems of VoIP in order to frustrate investigators. Skype’s encryption system is a secret which the company refuses to share with the authorities. Investigators have become increasingly reliant on wiretaps in recent years. Customs and tax police in Milan have highlighted the Skype issue. They overheard a suspected cocaine trafficker telling an accomplice to switch to Skype in order to get details of a 2kg drug consignment. Investigators are convinced that the interception of telephone calls have become an essential tool of the police, who spend millions of Euros each year tracking down crime through wiretaps of landlines and mobile phones.

Following a meeting with the judicial authorities in Milan, Italy, Ms Manfredda commented: ‘The possibility of intercepting internet telephony will be an essential tool in the fight against international organised crime within Europe and beyond. Our aim is not to stop users from taking advantage of internet telephony, but to prevent criminals from using Skype and other systems to plan and organise their unlawful actions. Eurojust will make all possible efforts to coordinate and assist in the cooperation between Member States’.

Joannes THUY
Press Officer & Spokesperson
EUROJUST
Maanweg 174, NL-2516 AB The Hague
The Netherlands
Tel +31 70 412 5508 – Fax +31 70 412 5005
E-mail: jthuy@eurojust.europa.eu”

(Via .)