Internet Laws

Software Piracy




Software piracy is the unauthorized duplication of computer software.
Although most computer users today are aware that unauthorized use and
duplication of software is illegal, many show a general disregard for
the importance of treating software as valuable intellectual property.




Cyber squatters




Many people believe that if they register a particular domain, for
example www.arkansascoffee.com, then the person has trademarked that as
a business name an no one else can use the name Arkansas Coffee for
their business. This is not necessarily true. You must not only
register the domain, but use the business name enough to achieve
distinction, such as through customer awareness and marketing.




File Sharing




Downloading music, movies, games, or software from the Internet without
paying and sharing these materials without appropriate permission is
considered a breach of copyright laws. Recreational file-sharing, or
the trading of movies, music, games, and/or software, is more easily
detectable than you might assume. Copyright holders have been
intensifying enforcement using automated scanning software to identify
infringements, no matter how small.




Domain Name Disputes




A domain name is a unique string of characters or numbers that
typically is used to designate and permit access to an Internet
website. The value of a trademark is diluted when a company owns a
domain name that is identical or confusingly similar to a trademark
registered by a different company. Potential customers may become
discouraged if they cannot find the web page for the company that owns
the trademark, and may fail to continue to search out of frustration or
an assumption that the page does not exist. In addition, the domain
name registrant's use of a trademark as a domain name places the
trademark owner at the mercy of the registrant, allowing the registrant
to associate the owner's trademark with all types of messages and
preventing the owner from using its trademark as a unique identifier of
its goods and services on the Internet. This further weakens the
trademark owner's ability to protect its reputation and goodwill.




Email Harassment?




Law enforcement agencies estimate that electronic communications are a
factor in from 20 percent to 40 percent of all stalking cases. If you
are being harassed, or even stalked, via email, you have a couple of
options, particularly if you know who the person sending you the emails
is. First, contact the senders ISP (Internet Service Provider) and make
a complaint, which could result in this person losing their email
account, and, at any rate, sets up a trail of evidence. Second, keep
all the emails sent to you as further evidence. Third, do not reply to
the harasser. Fourth, if there are threats of violence, you should
contact your local law enforcement agency immediately, because this can
constitute a crime.