Evolutionary Forcing On File Sharers Intensifies In The UK

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File-sharers face clampdown after court battle fails
11:33 21 April 2011
Computing
InternetLawPaul Marks, senior technology correspondent

Illegal downloaders, beware. Internet Service Providers (ISPs) may soon be sending warning letters to any of their customers who are believed to be downloading copyright-infringing material.

Objections to a swathe of so-far-undisclosed "technical measures" aimed at bringing music, movie, television, sports and e-book filesharers to heel in the UK were yesterday thrown out by the High Court. It remains to be seen whether the technical measures will include the severing of the internet connectons of serial alleged offenders, as is now the case in France, which has a three-strikes-and-you're-out law.

In the death throes of the Labour government almost a year ago, Gordon Brown's administration passed legislation called the Digital Economy Act. As the law was coalescing, New Scientist quoted Andrew Heaney of the ISP TalkTalk on the subject of the deep packet inspection (DPI) technology that may be required under the technical measures to check the content of internet users digital traffic. He said:

This is the kind of snooping you'd expect in China, not a modern western democracy. It raises huge questions over privacy invasion and freedom of expression.

Because DPI technology is used by repressive regimes like Iran to seek out emails and videos swapped by dissidents, ISPs are uncomfortable about using it. In addition, it will shift them from being an innocent "common carrier" of data - and that may have legal ramifications.

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