# DMCA and Due Process

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dmca-and-due-process/77788>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [August 23, 2001, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dmca-and-due-process/77788 "2001-08-23T20:56:03Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Carnal\_knowledge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c57346/32.png) [@Carnal\_knowledge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carnal_knowledge)\
**Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dmca-and-due-process/77788/1 "2001-08-23T20:56:03Z")

</div>

I thought of this as a poll question, but it may be better off in GQ or GD, as always, at the discretion of the mods.

[http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/2001/08/23/pirate/index.html](http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/2001/08/23/pirate/index.html)

IANAL, but it seems to me that a legal argument could be made that the fellow in the article has been deprived of his right to due process.

What would be the strongest legal argument to present against the DMCA, if not due process?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\
**Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dmca-and-due-process/77788/2 "2001-08-23T21:03:55Z")

</div>

The people weren’t arrested. Their internet service was cut  
off. I think they could probably ask for pro-rated ISP subscription  
money back.

If the guy can show he was monetarily damaged by not having  
e-mail, he might have a civil suit. Probably wouldn’t be  
worth it.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Carnal\_knowledge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c57346/32.png) [@Carnal\_knowledge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carnal_knowledge)\
**Post date:** [August 24, 2001, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dmca-and-due-process/77788/3 "2001-08-24T13:36:52Z")

</div>

I agree with you, bup.

Thinking about civil suits, who would be the most likely target?

> [@](#):
>
> But how exactly did the MPAA get its information about the movie that we supposedly uploaded to Usenet? Is our every move in cyberspace being watched?
> 
> Basically, yes. As I researched further, I discovered there is a burgeoning industry based on patrolling the Net for copyright abuses. There is, for example, Ranger Online, a company that provides “Intelligent Online Scanning” technology to organizations such as the MPAA.

I would think either the MPAA or the organization that provided “his” IP to the MPAA would be liable for something…

However, I was trying to think more generally of ways that legal challenges to this “law” might be brought about.