Comcast/ATT cable internet users

[1mic]

A friend of mine said Comcast is cracking down on Kazaa and Kazaa lite users...like records of what u download go on comcast servers.
i heard someguy from my area (bay area, CA) got warned (lots of people download off of him)
some questions for anyone who knows:
is this true or has this already happened?
should i delete my kazaa lite?
is there a way around it?
will DC be in effect too?

 

[boombexus]

Wow, I'm a comcast user and I haven't heard anything about that yet, but in all honesty, it really wouldn't surprise me if it were true.

I'm interested to know what's going to happen as well.

 

[Spock]

it think if you just leach files and dont share alot and keep you files you dont wanna share in a not shared folder you should be ok (sorry if that was confusing)

 

[Solid Fro]

If you have a dynamic IP address, boombexus, you shouldn't worry too much. The only way the RIAA can track you (or anyone else) is by your IP address. If it changes everytime you log in (dynamic), no one can track you after you log off.

 

[Der Alta]

1 mic, I too am a comcast user. The policy that applies (if I read my contract correctly) is that even though you can download/upload at amazign rates, you are limited to a certain amount of bandwidth per month.

With a large amount of people uploading and him downloading, I could see him exceeding his monthly quota. In that case, I could see him getting a warning for excesive transmission.

Have your buddy go back and check his contract to see if there are those type of limits imposed on his account.

AO

 

[GilesGuthrie]

Spock: Not true. The RIAA can subpoena the source computer. Kazaa works off logins, so the source computer will have the Kazaa username of the destination (requesting) user.

Viper Zero: Not true. Dynamic IP Addresses are served by DHCP servers, which keep logs. They will record the MAC address of every machine that they lease an address to, and they probably have your MAC address on file somewhere. Telewest in the UK limit access to cable networks by MAC address, so they have a clear link there.

Even if they don't, managed hubs/switches can report which port (and hence which connection) a given device is connected to. They CAN trace you.

Der Alta: Again, not strictly true. The Acceptable Use Policy of your ISP will almost certainly have a clause in it about illegal use. It will also have a clause in it that says that they (and you) must comply with any legal investigation that may or may not be related to your online activities. Also, the US Justice Department has upheld the RIAA's subpoena requiring subscriber information, as AP reports thus:

The U.S. Justice Department filed a brief Friday supporting the effort by the Recording Industry Association of America to force Verizon Internet Services to identify a subscriber suspected of violating copyrights by offering more than 600 songs online. Verizon had asked a federal judge to block the subpoena, arguing that it violated the First Amendment's "protection of the expressive and associational interests of Internet users." However, the Justice Dept. filing said the subpoena, which was sought under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, was legal. The judge will now have to decide the constitutional issue, which is viewed as an important test of the DMCA's applicability in Internet copyright cases. The filing comes as the recording industry is becoming increasingly aggressive in its quest to identify and punish music "pirates."

Basically, these are worrying times for P2P users.

 

[rjensen11]

So it checks for the user names? What about the millions that use kazaaliteuser?

 

[Der Alta]

I think you might have misunderstood me Giles. In 1mic's post he wasn't exactly clear on why his buddy was warned.

Was the warning regarding dowloading illegal material, or was the warning for downloading excessive amounts of information.

Were it illegal material, and related to the RIAA, I think the warning would have come with a much sterner delivery. If it were excessive downloads (eating bandwidth) The warning could have come as an e-mail.

My next thoguht, and somewhat unrelated, is that someone is bound to produce a virus with a title saying "You've been targeted as having downloaded illegal files. The attached form is a copy of hte formal letter that will be delivered via messenger to you." As soon as the person clicks on the attachment....Boom.

Just a thought.

AO

 

[Shannon]

www.k-lite.tk

The latest version has a built in option to block IP address from the RIAA, etc...

 

[KosmikFool]

Not quite sure how legal that is but I don't use KaZaA anyway.

 

[Solid Fro]

Kazaa, the program, is legal. The users sharing copyrighted files are the illegal part.

 

[1mic]

yea i heard some guy had to pay a 1000 dollar fine, cuz he got caught using kazaa...
i think ima delete mine now

 

[KosmikFool]

Originally posted by Viper Zero
Kazaa, the program, is legal. The users sharing copyrighted files are the illegal part.

I mean the part where they block the RIAA from watching...

Originally posted by 1mic
yea i heard some guy had to pay a 1000 dollar fine, cuz he got caught using kazaa...
i think ima delete mine now

Thats a huge understatement. They will charge up to $150,000 a song for things they find in your shared folder. So just take everything out of your shared folder and don't download mass amounts at one time. Simple. If its not in your shared folder, they can't prove you got it off of a file-sharing program.