also @ TechSpot: Xbox One: Entertainment Hub First, Gaming Console Second -- But Could It Disrupt TV?

› ›

RIAA blocked from accessing person's hard drive

By Justin Mann

On October 27, 2006, 8:16 PM

In a small victory for personal rights in the never ending battle of copyright violations, a recent court decision has blocked the RIAA from confiscating a defendant's hard drive. The lawsuit was filed by Sony and several other companies against a downloader, and during the course of the case they attempted to get unrestricted access to the person's hard drive, regardless of what content might be on it. Of course, many were outraged by this, considering the amount of personal material that can be stored on any one person's drives.

Instead, a 3rd party forensics group has to be brought in to look for evidence of copyright violation. The ruling will probably impact future cases, since RIAA and companions seem relentless in their struggle against individual downloaders.

No tags on this story

1 comment

User Comments: 1

Got something to say? Post a comment
  1. October 29, 2006 9:24 AM
    9Nails said:
    This should have been done a long time ago when RIAssA first started suing the public. They should have an independent verify 3 things, 1. That the file share application is installed and configured with the captured username, 2. that the media matches the same CRC as what they originally detected. 3. that the media is truly being shared with the Internet. There shouldn't even be a case if these things are not a match.I fully agree with the defendant's lawyer on this... The RIAssA's shoot first, aim later approach to copyright lawsuits is a horrendous way to accuse the public of stealing.I'm glad a judge finally has the smarts to see this long overdue ruling.
    Reply

Recently commented stories

Post a new comment

Social Login & Guest Posting TechSpot Members
Login here or sign up for free,
it takes about a minute.
Get complete access to the TechSpot community. Join thousands of technology enthusiasts that contribute and share knowledge in our forum. Get a private inbox, upload your own photo gallery and more.
TechSpot on:

Most Popular

Trending Featured
More Trending Topics

Featured on Cases

Downloads and Drivers

Downloads   Drivers  

IObit Malware Fighter 2.0

Instantbird 1.4

BitTorrent Sync 1.0.134

Spybot - Search & Destroy 2.1.19

Google Chrome for Windows 27.0.1453.93

More Downloads

Latest Discussion

Which is the best smartphone to buy? 23 replies on Mobile Computing

Screen saver stop working after installing Norton 8 replies on Software Apps

External hard drive not showing up on my MacBook Pro 29 replies on Storage and Networking

IPod Home Button Problems 11 replies on Other Hardware

How do I begin to build a custom computer? 13 replies on Other Hardware

More Recent Discussion

Subscribe to TechSpot

Get free exclusive content, learn about new features and breaking tech news.