Boston College was served a subpoena last week by the Recording Industry Association of American (RIAA) that requires the University to disclose the name of a student who shared files illegally on the Internet.
The RIAA put out a press release regarding a series of lawsuits in the process of being filed in November, one of which was to BC. The company tried to file suit in December, but was held up by administrative rules by a Boston judge.
The subpoena was finally served in a Boston area court in January. The student, whose name is being withheld by the University, is one of many students at several universities targeted by the RIAA in a new wave of "John Doe" lawsuits that seek to match a name to an IP address accused of illegal filesharing.
"The student has been given notice of the subpoena," said University General Counsel Joe Herlihy. "The recording companies filed a lawsuit in Boston against an unknown defendant, a 'John Doe,' and are currently trying to find out who this 'John Doe' is."
The University is barred from releasing any personal information about the student under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. Only the student can give the University permission to release his or her name. Subsequently, he or she can either settle the lawsuit with the RIAA or successfully contest, or "quash," the subpoena.
BC is not a party to the case and involvement is limited to a response to the subpoena, said Herlihy. He also said that the legal process should progress by mid-February.
"BC's policy as explained in the technology use policy, [means] the University cannot shield them from the consequences of copyright infringement," said Jack Dunn, University spokesperson. "We will cooperate with the subpoenas on behalf of the RIAA and other area colleges."
The RIAA has targeted individuals at other universities, including American University, Amherst College, Northeastern University, Georgetown University, and five students from Boston University.
Students should be cautious of installing filesharing programs on their computers, said David Escalante, Director of Policy/Security for Information Technology.
"When you get a peer-to-peer program and install it by default, it typically asks you to share any music files that can be downloaded," said Escalante. "The RIAA will scan the networks and if people failed to turn off the sharing option, it can get a list of files you're sharing and then argue that you're sharing those files illegally."
Another drawback to using peer-to-peer programs is the potential damage done to PC processes. Allegations have been brought against the program Kazaa in court, stating that installing the software causes harm to computers and attaches spyware. The allegations are presently being fought by Kazaa in court.
Federal law and BC policy prohibits sharing music, movies, or other copyright material. Presently, the University does not monitor or prevent filesharing.
"As an institution, we believe we have made it clear to all in a variety of fashions that while the technology itself is neither bad nor illegal, it is possible to use it inappropriately and illegally," said Escalante.
Other universities use peer-to-peer filesharing services included in the residential package. There are currently no plans to institute a similar service at BC.
"Students and other community members are welcome to sign up for any of a variety of commercial online sites that allow the legal downloading of music," said Escalante.
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