New copyright law could cut families off from internet

Canadian officials are working to create a bill that could ban entire families from internet for a year if anyone on their network is suspected of illegal downloading. Under the worldwide rules of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), internet providers like Bell and Rogers would be forced to stop any illegal downloads on their servers and hand over the names of suspected offenders, as well as restricting identity blockers. The new bill would enforce a three-strike policy for downloading illegal data such as pirated music and movie files, and if three strikes were accumulated, the offender(s) could be banned from their internet for 12 months and have to pay a fine.

While copyright protection is definitely an issue, I think this new law is just government officials being too lazy to punish one and just punish many innocent along with the guilty parties. This could become a problem in home internet servers, where children would download bit torrent movies and music, or even in the workplace, where entire offices could be shut off of internet. The blocking of identity software, while leaving piracy offenders with nowhere to hide, it would also leave anyone with personal information on their computers in danger of identity theft. All in all, I don't see these new policies faring well with the general public.


Article courtesy of the Montreal Gazette: http://www.montrealgazette.com/business/copyright%20could%20families%20year/2190230/story.html