Takedown Notice
Irdeto receives many calls from Internet users who have received infringement notices. This FAQ section should help answer the most common questions.
Information is included for parents about how a Notice may relate to the use of the computer by their children. Please remember that infringements can be generated by anyone on your computer or network who is downloading copyrighted materials, even friends who have access to your system or network for as little as 15 minutes. Regardless, you are responsible for any copyright violations that occur though your internet access account.
Please note that while the following is intended to assist you in resolving this matter and preventing its reoccurrence, none of the information contained here should be construed as legal advice.
Did you receive a Take Down notice?
Getting this resolved is easy.
Find and remove the file from your computer and use the link or email address provided in the Notice to reply to Irdeto (formerly BayTSP) that the infringing file was removed. Replying to the Notice is essential in resolving the issue. If you have problems, please review the FAQ to the left of this page.
If you still need further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact The Compliance Department at Irdeto below:
Questions about Copyright Infringement Notices
I have received an email (or letter in the mail) from my internet provider and I don’t know what it’s about.
You have received an “unauthorized use of copyrighted material” Notice. These Notices are sent when copyrighted material has been illegally downloaded from and/or uploaded to the internet. The information in your Notice provides you with details, including the name of the file, the time that the file was seen and the file size. Receiving such a Notice does not indicate that you are being personally accused of a crime, but rather that you are being alerted to potentially illegal activity that was detected over your connection and requested to assure that it stops.
How do I take care of this and what do I need to do?
Search for the file name listed in the Notice on all of the computers that have access to the internet account with the provider from which the Notice was received and delete when found. Use the link or email address provided in the Notice to reply to Irdeto and confirm the actions you have taken to comply with the Notice. Replying to the Notice is essential in resolving the issue. If you have problems please review this FAQ and if you still need further assistance, please use the contact information at the end of this page.
When did this occur and what is GMT?
The time stamp in the Notice reflects the time that Irdeto detected the file as being publicly available over your internet account, not necessarily when it was downloaded. The time listed is Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). You can find the current Greenwich Mean Time on this site: http://wwp.greenwichmeantime.com/ and use it to determine your local time for the time of detection.
I don’t recognize the title of the material listed as infringed. Is it a movie, a game, or something else?
Irdeto represents various clients that are copyright holders to all kinds of different content. Run a search for the Asset Name as it is listed in your Notice using your favorite search engine and you should be able to find out what type of material is in question.
How do I find the file on our computer?
If you are using Microsoft Windows, click on your start button, scroll to search, then select “All files or folders.” You can choose to search by exact file name or with key words. You’ll want to look on your hard drive for this file. Once your computer finds the file, it will list possible matches. You must determine which file corresponds to the one listed in the Notice.
Do I still need to reply if we don’t find the file on our computer?
Yes, it is important to respond and report the results of your investigation in any case. However, please note that Irdeto only sends Notices when infringing activity is detected and supporting evidence is gathered upholding the high standards of the law. Furthermore, please be advised that the account holder may be responsible for any activities over the account connection regardless of whether aware of and/or consenting to said activities. Therefore, if you do not find the file, this incident should be further investigated to determine and eliminate the source of the problem, especially since repeat occurrence could jeopardize your internet service. In order to resolve this case and to avoid these types of issues in the future we recommend taking the following steps:
- Locating and removing/deleting any unlicensed copyrighted content currently on your computer/system (please keep in mind that if something was professionally created within the last 75 years, it is likely to be copyrighted).
- Locating and disabling/uninstalling any peer-to-peer/file-sharing programs currently on your computer/system.
- Assuring that everyone that uses your internet connection account is aware of copyright infringement issues and does not download from any disreputable sources.
- Assuring that your wireless network (if applicable) is secured with passwords and encryption and that those security measures remain in place, especially after any service interruptions, such as a power outage.
- Keeping your virus scanning program up to date and running scans regularly.
- Contacting your internet service provider (ISP) and/or an IT professional of your choice for further assistance, if needed, to implement the above and/or to determine how this activity occurred and how to prevent its reoccurrence.
Then use the link or email address provided in the Notice to reply to Irdeto and confirm if you were unable to find the file and inform us of the actions you have taken to prevent future potentially illegal activity originating from your internet connection.
Who is Irdeto in this process?
Irdeto is a service company retained by copyright owners to identify individuals who are making their copyrighted works available for download on the internet. Irdeto sends infringement Notices on behalf of the clients and monitors for compliance. Irdeto does not own the copyrighted file; the company named in the Notice is the copyright holder. Irdeto is the company’s assigned agent to take care of these matters. In most cases, you are asked in the Notice to reply with your compliance directly to Irdeto and not the copyright holder. Irdeto reports who has complied and who has not to the copyright holders weekly.
Has Irdeto invaded our privacy? Do you know what else is on my personal computer?
Irdeto does not scan your computer or invade your privacy. Irdeto collected the information identifying your computer through the file-sharing network or public internet site that your computer was connected to. Most peer-to-peer / file-sharing programs require that you share files (allow others to download from you) even as you are downloading from others using the network. By using a file-sharing program, you are potentially allowing strangers to download files from your computer. File-sharing programs are not illegal themselves – it’s what is shared over them that can cause problems. Sharing copyrighted materials without the permission of the copyright owner is illegal.
Additionally, please note that Irdeto does not have your personal details and contact information. When Irdeto detects potentially illegal activity, it is seen over a specific IP Address. Public IP Registry records are then used to determine which internet service provider (ISP) handles service for that IP and a Notice of copyright infringement is forwarded accordingly. The ISP is requested to check their records and bring the matter to the attention of the relevant customer, so that steps can be taken to assure that this activity stops and does not happen again. If you received a Notice of copyright infringement, your ISP has traced the IP address in question to your account at the time of the incident. If you feel that your account was misidentified, please address this with your ISP.
Are we being sued?
This Notice is not initiating a lawsuit against you. Irdeto is requesting that you delete the file listed in the Notice and reply to Irdeto confirming that you did so. Irdeto will notify the copyright holder that you are no longer violating copyright laws. Irdeto does not initiate lawsuits on behalf of its clients. Irdeto cannot say what the copyright holder will do, but if this is your first Notice, chances are that you will not be sued.
Is it possible to receive a Notice for material that I did not download, but legitimately purchased?
The most likely cause of this would be that the file-sharing application on your computer scanned your entire hard drive and is making available music, software or movie files other than those in the shared folder of the file-sharing application. This is a violation of copyright holders’ rights and you must take steps to stop it. Uninstalling the file-sharing application is the best way to stop your files from being made available to others on the internet. A few popular file-sharing programs you may find on your system are eDonkey2000, eMule, Limewire, BearShare, FastTrack, Overnet, WinMX, Ares, DC++, Shareaza, Soulseek, KaZaA, Morpheus, Gnutella, and BitTorrent clients such as Azureus, BitTornado, BT++, BitComet, Vuze, µTorrent, and BitLord.
You are responsible for what your PC is doing and what network it is sharing with – so these are our recommendations:
- Determine whether any computer in your home has file-sharing software installed on it
- Uninstall the file-sharing software, unless you need it for a legal purpose
- If you continue to use a file-sharing program, turn off file sharing so that others don’t have access to your computer
- Do not download files you know or suspect to be copyrighted material except from reputable sources, authorized for distribution by the copyright holders. In general – if it was professionally created within the last 75 years, then it is most likely copyrighted.
We have paid for permission to download by subscribing to a peer-to-peer website. Why did I still get a Notice?
Your subscription is limited to the use of these companies’ websites and file-sharing software. Sharing your personal pictures, home movies, and the like is legal. However, sharing or downloading copyrighted material from the network is not legal. Some companies may lead people to believe that a subscription authorizes you to download copyrighted material (software programs, games, music, movies, TV shows, etc.). Irdeto recommends you read all the information regarding the subscription and agreement to clearly understand what they are offering.
How do I know that the IP address listed in the Notice was not spoofed with regard to the reported activity?
Irdeto has implemented measures to prevent the reporting of infringing activity over spoofed IP addresses.
My internet service is disconnected because of this.
Your internet service provider (ISP) controls your access to the internet. Nearly all ISPs have Terms of Service agreements that customers must abide by and most of these address issues relating to copyright infringement. Depending on the ISP, your internet connectivity can be suspended upon your receiving one or more infringement Notices. If your connectivity has been suspended, you should contact your ISP to determine what you must do to have it reinstated.
I still need more help.
Contact our Compliance Department at +1 747 248 6447 or email to iicopyright-compliance@irdeto.com.
Where can I find more information?
United States Copyright Office Main Page:
http://www.copyright.gov
World Legal Resource Center, Internet Law Library:
http://www.lawmoose.com/internetlawlib/325.htm
World Intellectual Property Organization (for International violations):
https://www.copyright.gov/docs/2180_stat.html
Copyright Infringement information as provided by the MPAA and including an array of legal choices for enjoying copyrighted materials online:
http://respectcopyrights.org