By - 12 Oct 2011
The Copyright (Infringing File Sharing) Amendment Act came into
force on 1 September 2011. The revised legislation gives copyright
owners a "special regime for taking enforcement action against
people who infringe copyright through file sharing".
This law does not target activities like watching clips on
YouTube or downloading material from a website. It's all about
breaching copyright through file sharing - called "infringing file
sharing".
What is filing sharing?
Here's how it works. Someone has some data stored on their
computer - for example, a movie or some music. They make this data
available over the internet by putting it in their public shared
files. Another unknown person can then find and download the data
onto their own computer by using a software programme to connect to
the network.
This process is called "peer to peer" file sharing as the data
is transferred directly between two individual computers with equal
network access. Examples of peer to peer file sharing software
include Frostwire, Transmission and Shareza.
How do I know if my file sharing infringes copyright?
File sharing in itself is not illegal. But if you don't own the
copyright of a music track or movie file and upload it into your
public shared files, you are making it available for others to
access for free. That's when you will be infringing that music or
movie owner's copyright.
If the copyright owner discovers that their work is being
illegally shared, they can notify their Internet Protocol Address
Provider (IPAP) such as Telecom or Telstraclear, asking them to
take action against the alleged infringer.
The IPAP can then match the alleged infringing activity to one
of their account holder's Internet Protocol addresses and instigate
a "three strike" notice procedure against the account holder.
Help! I've received a notice!
- Firstly, stop any infringing activity.
- If you receive a notice, don't ignore it - it won't just go
away.
- If you wish to object, there are time limits to respond and you
must provide evidence to disprove the alleged infringement.
- If you do not challenge the notice, you will be presumed to
have committed an offence. If you keep infringing you could
end up in the Copyright Tribunal.
How to protect yourself at work
- As a business owner, be aware that your business is liable for
your employees' actions on their computers. That's because the
IP address account holder is liable for all infringements that
occur via their IP address.
- Update your IT/Internet policies and employment
agreements. Employees need to know that they must not install
file sharing software on your systems, or commit infringing
file sharing, and must understand the consequences of doing
so.
- Check your firewalls and security software.
- Cap the data an internet user can use. This will help to
deter file sharing.
Protect yourself at home
- Stop any infringing activity and educate your family about
copyright.
- Remove peer to peer file sharing software from your
computers.
- Update the firewalls/security/filtering/blocking software on
your PC. If your computer is hacked, you could end up
receiving infringement notices.
- Protect your wireless connection with a password.
Protection for schools/universities
- Visit Netsafe's website for information about what to do
if your school receives an infringement notice http://www.netsafe.org.nz/netsafe-advice-to-schools-what-to-do-if-your-school-receives-an-infringement-notice-from-your-isp
- The Ministry of Economic Development_ has further resources to
help you understand and avoid infringing file sharing.
Visit http://www.med.govt.nz
Talk to Martelli McKegg
If you need advice about complying with the new legislation,
what to do if you receive a notice or how to enforce your rights as
a copyright owner, please contact Emma Hunter.