supergirl
join:2007-03-20
Pensacola, FL
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Court rules against TorrentSpy in hacking case
Judge rules MPAA didn't violate Wiretap Act, but studios acknowledge purchasing private e-mail exchanges.
By Greg Sandoval
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
Published: August 28, 2007, 3:17 PM PDT
Last modified: August 28, 2007, 3:50 PM PDT
But while a U.S. District judge found that the Motion Picture Association of America had not violated the federal Wiretap Act, as TorrentSpy's attorneys had argued, the MPAA acknowledged in court records that it paid $15,000 to obtain private e-mails belonging to TorrentSpy executives.
The MPAA's acknowledgement is significant because it comes at a time when the group is trying to limit illegal file sharing by imploring movie fans to act ethically and resist the temptation to download pirated movies. To critics, the revelation by the MPAA is a possible sign that the organization is itself not above adopting unethical practices in its fight against file sharing.
"Ethically, it's pretty clear that reading other people's e-mail is wrong," said Lorrie Cranor, an associate research professor and Internet privacy expert at Carnegie Mellon University. "Being offered someone else's e-mails by a third party should have been a red flag."
The MPAA, which says that illegal file sharing costs the film industry more than $2 billion annually, did not respond to interview requests.
In court records, the MPAA said that the person who obtained the e-mails did so before approaching the group with an offer to sell the information and that he signed a contract stating he had come by the correspondence through lawful means.
Ira Rothken, TorrentSpy's attorney said: "We believe that the MPAA, when it paid $15,000 for about 30 pages of e-mails, knew or should have known they were involved in purchasing something in a wrongful manner."
»marketwatch-cnet.com.com/Court-r···948.html
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Saving the world keeps me busy. However, I find Earth very primitive from my home planet of Krypton.
-Supergirl |
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knightmb
Everybody Lies
join:2003-12-01
Franklin, TN
·AT&T DSL Service
| said by supergirl  :In court records, the MPAA said that the person who obtained the e-mails did so before approaching the group with an offer to sell the information and that he signed a contract stating he had come by the correspondence through lawful means. I love that part, WTF? So if someone came up to me and said "Hey, I got all this money from the bank through lawful means" would I take the money and assume that banks just freely give out money? Either the MPAA are just plain idiots (likely) or someone really needs to get fired there. |
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bartem01
join:2000-11-01
Brooklyn, NY | reply to supergirl
Mr. Anderson.
Matrix Reversed coming soon. |
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Hehe
@ssa.gov | reply to supergirl
Ok, the next time I downoad movies or mp3 I will just get a letter stating he had come by the movies (or mp3) through lawful means.
OMG! |
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russotto
join:2000-10-05
Collegeville, PA
| reply to knightmb
said by knightmb :So if someone came up to me and said "Hey, I got all this money from the bank through lawful means" would I take the money and assume that banks just freely give out money? Either the MPAA are just plain idiots (likely) or someone really needs to get fired there. Most likely the MPAA hired the guy to come up with the stuff, and concocted this story to provide plausible deniability.
That is, they're lying through their teeth. |
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theeinstein
Premium
join:2003-07-31
Fernandina Beach, FL
| reply to Hehe
I was thinking... We could say "some person" came by and attached to my open access point downloaded the movies I accidentally taped to my front door and placed them in my "put those movies here folder" on my hard drive.
BUT I was told they were recorded lawfully.
=)
What this is ... the MPAA acting as if all Americans are stupid!! The more we sit back and allow this to transpire the more they prove their point..
How pathetic! |
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woody7
Premium
join:2000-10-13
Torrance, CA
·EarthLink
·DSL EXTREME
| Not being a lawyer, nor "Pirate", nor naive, isn't accessing someone else's computer for whatever reason illegal (unless there is a court order)? I think a "civil" suit is in order, unless they are some how "immune" 
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BlooMe |
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cork1958
Cork
join:2000-02-26
Fruitport, MI
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1 edit | reply to russotto
said by russotto :Most likely the MPAA hired the guy to come up with the stuff, and concocted this story to provide plausible deniability. That is, they're lying through their teeth. Yep!! |
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theeinstein
Premium
join:2003-07-31
Fernandina Beach, FL
| reply to woody7
said by woody7 :Not being a lawyer, nor "Pirate", nor naive, isn't accessing someone else's computer for whatever reason illegal (unless there is a court order)? I think a "civil" suit is in order, unless they are some how "immune" Ha yea... and like murder if you pay or help plan it aren't you also liable? |
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supergirl
join:2007-03-20
Pensacola, FL
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| reply to knightmb
said by knightmb :said by supergirl :In court records, the MPAA said that the person who obtained the e-mails did so before approaching the group with an offer to sell the information and that he signed a contract stating he had come by the correspondence through lawful means. I love that part, WTF? So if someone came up to me and said "Hey, I got all this money from the bank through lawful means" would I take the money and assume that banks just freely give out money? Either the MPAA are just plain idiots (likely) or someone really needs to get fired there. Let's see: Ira Rothken, TorrentSpy's attorney said: "We believe that the MPAA, when it paid $15,000 for about 30 pages of e-mails, knew or should have known they were involved in purchasing something in a wrongful manner."
If TorrentSpy believes he approached the MPAA, umm, why can't you? Oh, hate clouds your cognitive functions. 
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Saving the world keeps me busy. However, I find Earth very primitive from my home planet of Krypton.
-Supergirl |
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MrMoody
Carbon Based Lifeform
join:2002-09-03
Smithfield, NC | reply to supergirl
And once again we see that it's OK for the "good guys" to break the law in order to get the "bad guys." |
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Anomus
@rr.com
| reply to cork1958
This is a wasted argument. The courts dont care much if the big boys have ethical issues, when they are trying to convict a criminal. Cops ALWAYS bald face lie and deceive suspects to trick them into making damning statements. Unless they make a technical blunder, the ends always justify the means even if the judges end up scolding the big boys. |
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Thrudd
join:2004-06-21
Mississauga, ON
| reply to cork1958
said by cork1958 :said by russotto :Most likely the MPAA hired the guy to come up with the stuff, and concocted this story to provide plausible deniability. That is, they're lying through their teeth. Yep!! Thats I new one on me.
I never knew that they sat on their teeth. |
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Help Im a bug
@cox.net | reply to knightmb
You forgot to add that you're pulling off your ski mask as you tell the story |
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