Comcast Tracked me.

[kof2000]

usually people dont give a rat's ass unless it is them the fbi's are after

 

[computermaineack]

They only really go after you if you have loads of illegal files on your computer, like 10,000+ mp3's....

Although I do have a friend who got caught by Fox downloading an episode of House... nothing really happened, he moved all of his files onto external drives and gave his computer (minus the external drives) to his university to search it for like the seventh time. They gave him his computer back (they didn't find anything) and he had to go on dialup for a month.

 

[Redbull{wings}]

any files on your computer are considered personal property just as much as say an object in your house. To access anything on your computer's hard drive legally without your permission some1 would need a search warrant otherwise it's illegal and would not hold up in court so even if they found files on your computer the court would dismiss it as evidence and then they're sitting on nothing

but if you signed a contract with comcast there may of been an article on monitoring your connection so that would give them permission

 

[XanderCage]

yep..

i would suggest doing the following,

1. maybe limit your downloads, its more suspicious if u have 30 gb uploads and downloads to 2 gb,

2. Dont stress over it, im taking it this is just a warning, big record companies dont go after regular people, they either target large companies ( refer to the napster scandal )

3. tkae your harddrive burn it, smash it with a jackhammer, throw it into a river, find it, ship it to somewhere in like cambodia.

 

[Lord Of The Ming]

I would Guess that comcast won't do anything. The worst thing they might do is cut your internet. You probably just Violated the EULA.

 

[Punk]

Well the best advise is to STOP downloading....

 

[computermaineack]

I was reading the wikipedia page on PeerGuardian, and I found this:

The design of PeerGuardian is to prevent the collection of evidence that can be used as proof that a particular IP address is connected to a particular network. To bring a successful public or private prosecution in most countries very detailed logs must be obtained as to alleged activity on the network, and there must be proven evidence that particular files are available from that person.

Information provided by a tracker or eDonkey peer is insufficient. Organizations hired by RIAA, etc will attempt to connect directly to each individual they wish to investigate to gather evidence. This process is automated and is carried out through high speed connections bought by various subcontractors, such as BayTSP, MediaSentry, and Comcast.

 

[dmw2692004]

I was reading the wikipedia page on PeerGuardian, and I found this:

so this e-mail was automated?

 

[M0ddingMan1a]

dude they cant do that thats violationg of like rights, they need a warrant first, they are not the fbi..... and this is not a terrorist case...

well first of all, its probable cause. with probable cause, they can just used wat they traced from bt client and get a warrant for that.

but after wat computermaineack posted, iono. lol. since its "insufficient" there could be a slip for the user.

 

[computermaineack]

so this e-mail was automated?

No, the process of them looking through your computer is automated.

 

[Glorious]

i am not going to explain why, but use eMule, make sure u set it up right and change the ports...

use your HD all you want
If they ask you to provide HD for search say sure and give them some old HD or buy a new one and say "damn it if i only knew u would check i would have never upgraded"

 

[Sudi]

1. How often and how much do you download/used to download?
2. The letter doesn't really say that you'll be going to court etc. it just says that your account might be suspended.
3. The tracker you downloaded from is not private, it's not secure...

 

[thesamurai]

Possible Answer

I had heard somewhere that you may be able to get away with this -- under this pretty common circumstance:

Here's your response:

"I live in an apartment complex with tenants all around me. I was unaware that I was running an open access point with my cable internet. I do not participate in illegal activity and do not condone the use of software that does. Unfortunately, the open access point allowed anyone within range to use my Comcast internet service without me knowing about it. I have consulted with a Computer Technician to secure my wireless network and have corrected the problem."

Then destroy and replace your hard drive.

My little 2 cents.

 

[oscabat]

That's really odd that you got a message for that movie, because I got this message a few weeks ago:

NAME: ________
MAIL: ________
EID: ________

The University of Texas at Austin has received legal
notification alleging that a computer resource for which
you are responsible has been used for sharing copyrighted
material. A copy of the notice is attached.

HOST: ______
MAC: _______
PORT: _______
DATE: 23 Nov 2006 20:00:28 CST

APP: BitTorrent
FILE: John.Tucker.Must.Die[2006]DvDrip.AC3[Eng]-aXXo/John.Tucker.Must.Die[2006]DvDrip.AC3[Eng]-aXXo.avi

You must contact <[email protected]> concerning
this matter within 24 hours to avoid having your Internet
access via the University disabled. Student Judicial
Services (SJS) is being copied on this complaint. If you believe
this notification was sent in error, your response should
explain why. Otherwise your response should indicate what
actions you have taken to eliminate the copyright
infringement –- including, if applicable, file sharing
within the University network (e.g., Windows Network
Neighborhood).

Copyright infringement is a violation of federal law and
university rules,

http://www.utexas.edu/its/policies/responsible.html#rules

The University is transmitting this notification to you
under the terms of the Federal Digital Millennium Copyright
Act (DMCA).

Consequences of copyright infringement include disciplinary
actions by the University. In addition, persons who infringe
on another's copyright may be sued in federal courts by
copyright owners or their representatives.

The University reserves the right to terminate network
services of users who repeatedly infringe upon the rights
of copyright owners http://www.utexas.edu/policies/dmca.html.
A second offense will result in immediate termination of network
services and a formal referral to SJS.

For more information on copyright and fair use, please see
the Safe Downloading Best Practices:

http://www.utexas.edu/its/bestpractices/

Thank you for your attention to this important matter.

-Kelly

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Kelly Kerby, CISSP, GCIH
Senior Network Security Analyst
UT Austin Information Security Office
[email protected] 512.475.9242
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Date: Mon, 27 Nov 2006 16:25:53 -0800
Subject: Notice ID: 160-75191 Copyright Infringement
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA1

University of Texas at Austin

Re: Unauthorized Use of Twentieth Century FOX Film Corporation Property

Notice ID:160-75191
Notice Date:27 Nov 2006 22:48:47 GMT


Dear Sir or Madam:

TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX FILM CORPORATION and its affiliated companies (collectively, "FOX") are the exclusive owners of copyrights in motion pictures.

It has come to our attention that University of Texas at Austin is the service provider for the IP address listed below, from which unauthorized copying and distribution (downloading, uploading, file serving, file "swapping" or other similar activities) of FOX'S property is taking place. The documentation included at the end of this notice specifies the location of the infringement. We believe that the Internet access of the user engaging in this infringement is provided by University of Texas at Austin or a downstream service provider who purchases this connectivity from University of Texas at Austin.

This unauthorized copying and distribution constitutes copyright infringement under Section 106 of the U.S. Copyright Act. Depending upon the type of service University of Texas at Austin is providing to this IP address, it may have legal and/or equitable liability if it does not expeditiously remove or disable access to the property listed below, or if it fails to implement a policy that provides for termination of subscribers who are repeat infringers (see, 17 U.S.C. 512).

Although various legal and equitable remedies may be available to FOX as a result of such infringement, FOX believes that the entire Internet community benefits when these matters are resolved cooperatively. We urge you to take immediate action to effect removal of the detected infringement listed in the attached report, including:

(1) Notify the account holder of this infringement
(2) Require the account holder remove the infringing material
(3) Disable access to the infringing material
(4) Take appropriate action against the account holder under your Abuse Policy/Terms of Service

We appreciate your efforts toward this common goal. Please send us a prompt response indicating the actions you have taken to resolve this matter. Please reference the above noted Notice ID 160-75191in all correspondence, which should be directed to :

Email: mailto:[email protected]?subject=RE%3A%20Notice%20ID%3A%20160%2D75191%20Copyright%20Infringement

or http://webreply.baytsp.com/webreply...160&commhash=2aaed8873e576e1cbc041cbeee63745a

The undersigned has a good faith belief that use of FOX's property in the manner described herein is not authorized by FOX, its agents or the law. Also, we hereby state, under penalty of perjury, under the laws of the State of California and under the laws of the United States, that the information in this notification is accurate and that the undersigned is authorized to act on behalf of FOX with respect to this matter.

Please be advised that this letter is not and is not intended to be a complete statement of the facts or law as they may pertain to this matter or of FOX's positions, rights or remedies, legal or equitable, all of which are specifically reserved.

Regards,


Sarah Bergman
BayTSP, Inc. :: Compliance Manager
PO Box 1314 - Los Gatos, CA 95031

ph: 408-341-2300 fx: 408-341-2399
[email protected]
[A pgp public key is available on the key server at ldap://keyserver.pgp.com if you would like to verify the authenticity of this notice.]

Evidentiary Information:
Notice ID: 75191
Asset: John Tucker Must Die DVD
Protocol: BitTorrent
IP Address: _________
DNS: ________
File Name: John.Tucker.Must.Die[2006]DvDrip.AC3[Eng]-aXXo/John.Tucker.Must.Die[2006]DvDrip.AC3[Eng]-aXXo.avi
File Size: 733880320
Timestamp: 24 Nov 2006 02:00:28 GMT
Last Seen Date: 24 Nov 2006 02:00:28 GMT
URL:
Username (if available):

Here is what I responded with:

I have just received a warning that I have shared copyrighted material
on my computer. I did so in error, and once I was aware of such
actions, I promptly deleted the file. Is there any further action that
I need to take?

Thank you,
_________

They told me that I didn't have to worry about anything, and that my action was fine. I haven't gotten anything since.

 

[codeman0013]

Believe me i have a family member that works for the FBI in consumer fraud what he told me and i quote:" If a computer is in question it is considered property of the user, but in the case of probable cause we do have the right to come to the house with a warrant and take the computer". They will do it if they have probably cause. Also they dont just go after users with hundereds and thousands of files. A grandmother of 10 in calfornia age 82 was arrested when the computer in her home was found to have 25 songs and 2 dvd's on it downloaded by her 14 year old grandson that stayed the weekend. She only used the computer for solitare and had no clue what the songs were or what the dvd was. She was fined 20k and her computer was taken. Believe me this happens all the time they are not playing around anymore. That email from comcast was legit i work for insight which is a comcast owned company and we do have packet sniffers in place and we can watch what you are doing if we have probable cause its right on the EULA you sign when you get interenet in your home!

 

[4W4K3]

its right on the EULA you sign when you get interenet in your home!

What if the person using the internet connection never signed an EULA?

I ask this, because a shared internet connection seems to be a loophole in this scenario. Someone found the password to connect to my wireless internet and proceeded to add there MAC address to the router to gain full access to my internet. They started torrenting hundreds of files. I got this e-mail and now I am in trouble. I was at work at the time Comcast noticed such activities, my manager and fellow employees can verify this, as well as the loss prevention security cameras in my building.

So what then? Am I still at fault?

 

[codeman0013]

Problem being usually this is really hard to trace that you didnt give them access. If you can prove the person did hack in and steal your password and it wasnt becuase you didnt change it away from teh defaults this is against the law and illegal. Not only would they be the one responsible for your intenet issues but they would also be responsible for the fines leved by the fcc and have to pay a fine to you for this and go to jail for up to 5 years.

 

[4W4K3]

Awesome. That is the response I was hoping for. It didn't actually happen to me, but I now know if it did I would be covered.

My passwords are burned into my brain, I never write them down. I'll occasionally type them over and over again if I feel like I'm forgetting one...but I never save it. And no...I don't have a keylogger hehe

 

[Sudi]

What if someone downloads a movie and has an original dvd at home?
Just to back it up in case it breaks? Let's say that they don't know how to rip a DVD...

 

[tlarkin]

What if someone downloads a movie and has an original dvd at home?
Just to back it up in case it breaks? Let's say that they don't know how to rip a DVD...

according to the DMCA that is illegal. You may not break encryption on any digital media.

I think that is asinine IMHO. I own 300+ vinyl records and I am not about to rip each one to digital, no I am going to download the ones I already own. I also order tons of dvds from HK cuz I don't wana wait until they come out in the US. I had hero, ong bak, the protector, house of flying daggers, crouching tiger, etc all on dvd before they even hit the theatres in the US. Then I went in saw in the theatre anyways. Well those are all different region dvds. So I have to rip them to my computer region free and reburn it to work on my dvd player at home. It is technically illegal but if I ever go to court I physically own everything on some media which I paid US dollars for so I don't feel bad at all.