IP address and RIAA lawsuit

[mosey]

A RIAA lawsuit has claimed that my daughter dowloaded P2P music from her computer at school. Their correspondence identified an IP address as hers. When I did an "what is my IP address?" inquiry, the numbers were different.
she lived in a 5-student suite in a dorm.

These attorneys have written letters and called and called and called, wanting us to settle. Since my daughter never did the downloads, i won't talk to them but i am worried. I have heard the RIAA has harassed thousands-probably 10's of thousands in their wide-net, cast to collect out of court settlements. When I told them her IP address is different, he said IP addresses change.

What evidence can I find to get them to leave me alone?
Also, what technological language would you use to explain it?

[wimiadmin]

Very good question Mosey.

Since their attorney said IP addresses change, I'd ask for proof as to how they know for a fact it was your daughter's laptop.

I just checked your registration IP and see that you're in the US. I also see that the IP is on campus. Is this the daughter that downloaded or really a parent? Doesn't really matter either way.

What proof are they using to tie this downloading to your daughter's computer? If you've still got the songs on the laptop, delete them immediately.

I've seen the RIAA put songs up for free download on programs like LimeWire, etc. and when people d/l them, the RIAA looks at the IP they're downloading from. If all they have is an IP, that's a long shot....unless of course the university has turned over their log files. In which case, they'd be able to match the IP to your MAC address at the specific time the download took place.

So, the ultimate question is how do they intend to show it's in fact your daughter. Even if it's her computer, with other girls sharing the same area and friends coming and going, who's to say someone else didn't do it while your daughter was away from her computer.

In any event, delete the songs, tell the attorneys you've deleted the songs and have no intention to download illegal music again from whatever program you were using.

Just curious....how many songs was it? I have a "friend" who has downloaded a ton and has not been contacted bythe RIAA.

[wimiadmin]

By the way, I'm not an attorney so take my legal advice for what it's worth.

[TheOne]

Where can one find their MAC address? I can't find anything undel my notebook other than serial numbers and model numbers.

How do I find it while running the laptop?


Thanks

Regarding the main topic in question, I think they keep on calling you to settle instead of going to court because they know they will have a hard time winning since it could have been any1. And without checking the mac address how would the school know which exact of had an ip unless one has to log in to go online.

[wimiadmin]

Originally Posted by TheOne

Where can one find their MAC address? I can't find anything undel my notebook other than serial numbers and model numbers.

How do I find it while running the laptop?

On a windows machine go to the command prompt (Start, Run, cmd, enter). Once at the command prompt, type ipconfig /all and look for the network connection that has an IP address. The one that has the IP address is most likely your active connection. In that information you'll see a line with Physical Address with numbers/letters that look like a1-b1-cc-00-etc. The Physical Address is your MAC address.

[jim262]

Originally Posted by TheOne

... without checking the mac address how would the school know which exact of had an ip unless one has to log in to go online.

When a DHCP server hands out an IP address, it records the MAC address to which it was "leased." Theoretically, a careful examination of this log will reveal the MAC address that had an IP address at the time of the alleged download.

FWIW when my daughter arrived on campus with her wireless laptop, she had to register it (specifically, its MAC address) with the IT department before it would let her onto the network. So they would be able to map an IP address (at a specified time) to a student's name.

That being said, I think most universities (like most ISP's) are very reluctant to hand over information that maps IP's to people. Some court action is usually necessary. ISTR reading that the RIAA was giving up on pursuing individuals, especially for just download (vs. "offering for download").
--
Jim

[mosey]

Originally Posted by wimiadmin

Very good question Mosey.

Since their attorney said IP addresses change, I'd ask for proof as to how they know for a fact it was your daughter's laptop.

I just checked your registration IP and see that you're in the US. I also see that the IP is on campus. Is this the daughter that downloaded or really a parent? Doesn't really matter either way.

What proof are they using to tie this downloading to your daughter's computer? If you've still got the songs on the laptop, delete them immediately.

I've seen the RIAA put songs up for free download on programs like LimeWire, etc. and when people d/l them, the RIAA looks at the IP they're downloading from. If all they have is an IP, that's a long shot....unless of course the university has turned over their log files. In which case, they'd be able to match the IP to your MAC address at the specific time the download took place.

So, the ultimate question is how do they intend to show it's in fact your daughter. Even if it's her computer, with other girls sharing the same area and friends coming and going, who's to say someone else didn't do it while your daughter was away from her computer.

In any event, delete the songs, tell the attorneys you've deleted the songs and have no intention to download illegal music again from whatever program you were using.

Just curious....how many songs was it? I have a "friend" who has
downloaded a ton and has not been contacted bythe RIAA.

Yes, I am actually the mom! and this is My computer you checked which does receive connectivity through a different university at home.

they said she downloaded 325!!! According to your answer, since she didn't do it, i guess the university logs would prove she didn't. is that right?
And the proof they sent in the "lawsuit" paperwork give an ip address, date and time download was supposedly done. Interesting note: original letter was sent April 2008...still getting calls...

[bb28]

Probably the best advice anyone can give you is to consult a lawyer who has dealt with the RIAA previously, pronto. If you google RIAA lawsuits you will find that most people settle, probably because they don't have the funds to fight such a battle and it's probably a losing battle as history shows. The RIAA really doesn't care if it was in fact your daughter or not, they have what they consider proof.

Either way it's not good.

[meister_sd]

Originally Posted by wimiadmin

In any event, delete the songs, tell the attorneys you've deleted the songs and have no intention to download illegal music again from whatever program you were using.

First thing, never admit the download - ever. Once you admit it, they will never let it go.

If your daughter really did download songs, then make them prove the action. If she didn't - fight it.

A college acts as a small ISP (Internet Service Provider). They can log the port in the switch your daughter uses and the IP issued. This ties the IP to the time, to the port, which all leads back to the room. If they also logged the MAC address, it will log the specific computer. Demand to see the "evidence" that they have before doing anything else. Every time they call, ask again for the "evidence" and sound like a broken record. Don't let them lead the conversation.

If all the above is in the "evidence", then you may either want to pay - get a lawyer - or fight it.

[wimiadmin]

Originally Posted by meister_sd

First thing, never admit the download - ever. Once you admit it, they will never let it go.

Good call meister_sd.

[soulzie]

There are programs out there that will actually let you fake your mac address. You can even locally administer your mac address depending on the type of network device you have.

Im not posting anything useful other than what is applicable. If you want to know more consult google.

Reading is fundamental

[thor183]

Well, you should know that IP addresses can be spoofed, and there are plenty of programs out there to help you demonstrate this.

So, if your daughter really did not download the music, then who ever did used a spoofed ip address which happened to be hers.

Logically and technically (I don't know about legally), the RIAA needs more than an IP address to have proof. They would, for instance, need the server logs at your daughters ISP showing the IP address assigned to her MAC address, AND a log of the download at the time it alledgedly happened.

Because, the alternative is that someone else did it using her IP address and that isn't too hard for any of the hackers out there.