# Could you get arrested for illegal MP3s or software? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 4, 2002, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-arrested-for-illegal-mp3s-or-software/127021 "2002-09-04T19:54:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![neutron\_star](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/51bf81/32.png) [@neutron\_star](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neutron_star)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2002, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-arrested-for-illegal-mp3s-or-software/127021/1 "2002-09-04T19:54:38Z")
Forgive me if this question sounds ignorant, but I’m not exactly a legal scholar. Is possessing and trading MP3s and pirated software copyright infrigement and entirely a civil matter? If so, where is the line drawn? The FBI routinely arrests people who make counterfeit copies of software for sale. So, is making a profit from it a criminal act while giving it away is infringement? If so, why did the FBI arrest members of “warez” groups that release pirated software on the Internet for free? Could they do the same to people who rip audio CDs for distribution on Kazaa? Or are the laws regarding the intellectual propery of software significantly different from those that pertain to music? ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2002, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-arrested-for-illegal-mp3s-or-software/127021/2 "2002-09-04T21:28:29Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by neutron star \* > \*\* > Is possessing and trading MP3s and pirated software copyright infrigement and entirely a civil matter? > \*\* Here’s the section of the US Code dealing with Copyright infringement. [http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/ch5.html](http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/ch5.html) Basically, copyright infringement is a civil matter and can be a criminal matter, if you infringe copyright for financial gain, or, if over a 180 day period, you reproduce or distribute items that have a total retail value of $1000. ---
**Author:** ![mrbuddylee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/51bf81/32.png) [@mrbuddylee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mrbuddylee)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2002, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-arrested-for-illegal-mp3s-or-software/127021/3 "2002-09-04T21:31:38Z")
Well, here is an answer which may not be quite right, but at least my take on it. In 1998 the Digital Millennium Copyright Act was passed. This law prohibits anyone from overriding a technological device that controls access to a copyrighted work. Now, the recent arrests you’ve probably been seeing involve people breaking into something which they shouldn’t. The case of the Russian hacker arrested in Las Vegas for breaking Adobe’s copyright protection, and the Warez hackers for breaking the copyright protection on a number of games. This law also deals with hardware, so hacking into the DVD player to play foreign discs and programs that allow you do to so are also covered under this law. There are people in congress that want to ammend the law and make it OK to mess with stuff that you own, but still illegal to distribute it. (You can put the MOD chip in your PS2, but you can’t sell them). The max fine/prison term for breaking this law is five years and a $500,000 fine. Now, on to the issue of music. With napster, they got in trouble because the the way you got songs was stored on their server. With Kazaa, the company does not know who has songs, and what they’re doing with them. It uses a Peer to peer system meaning your computer talks directly to other computers, with no server between. Now, with that said, Kazaa is going around the law (no direct link to them and illegal music), and they say that the system is provided for legal file sharing. Ok, anyways, on to your question. As far as I know, the laws protecting music and software are basically the same. Now, another interesting thing is this: If you’re caught breaking a copyright law, you probably won’t be put into jail. (Innocent until proven guilty), you’ll be sued and it’s much easier for someone to sue you than to get you thrown in jail. Here’s some reading if you’re really up to it: [http://www.templetons.com/brad/copymyths.html](http://www.templetons.com/brad/copymyths.html) [http://www.educause.edu/issues/dmca.html](http://www.educause.edu/issues/dmca.html) [http://www.softwaremetering.com/fines.html](http://www.softwaremetering.com/fines.html) (a little out dated) [http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,50620,00.html](http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,50620,00.html) (not exactly related) [http://www.riaa.org/Copyright-Laws-1.cfm](http://www.riaa.org/Copyright-Laws-1.cfm) (straight from the people that care the most) ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2002, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-arrested-for-illegal-mp3s-or-software/127021/4 "2002-09-04T21:38:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by neutron star \* > \*\* > Is possessing and trading MP3s and pirated software copyright infrigement and entirely a civil matter? > \*\* Here’s the section of the US Code dealing with Copyright infringement. [http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/ch5.html](http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/ch5.html) Basically, copyright infringement is a civil matter and can be a criminal matter, if you infringe copyright for financial gain, or, if over a 180 day period, you reproduce or distribute items that have a total retail value of $1000.