Anyone choose to refuse to disclose information to your ISP? (Copyright Infringement)

19 comments

1. You accidentally left your wifi open so someone used it to download illegal content. So what there to disclose?

   Curious what type of content did your wifi got caught downloading?

2. You can see how many of those suits are filed and it’s on the order of, like, a couple a month. Hard to say how many people refuse but I’d imagine it’s far more than that. Just a guess though.

   https://www.courts.go.jp/app/hanrei_jp/list1?page=1&sort=1&filter%5Btext1%5D=%E7%99%BA%E4%BF%A1%E8%80%85%E6%83%85%E5%A0%B1%E9%96%8B%E7%A4%BA

   That said it looks like they’re basically an automatic win for the copyright holder. Also I’m not sure if this list is exhaustive. Anyway the risk to you is that you could be on the hook for their legal fees vs the ISP, which will be way more than the fee you pay for settling early.

   Try it out and tell us what happens!

   edit: just looked into it and that list is definitely NOT exhaustive. Not even close. Who knows how many are filed each year. And like I said, basically an automatic win, so why wouldn’t they file em. If it was me… I’d be looking at settling quickly lol.

3. No idea how any of this works legally but did your ISP inform you of who wants your information and what for? You said you used a VPN so they might just be fishing or your ISP might have given you an IP previously used by somebody else who downloaded something etc.

4. There are many precedents where ISPs were forced to hand over their user information to the copyright holders in civil court. But it’s not 100%. From time to time, they get away with it, and there are good chances they’ve already deleted your log if it’s old. A settlement is an option, of course, but just refusing to disclose and seeing what comes out next also looks like a viable option to me. idk.

5. Did they specify what the content was?

   May I ask what it was? Hollywood movie? Software? Music?

6. > I used a VPN but still it was dumb to think myself immune.

   If you were correctly using a VPN, the traffic would have been unreadable for your ISP and your IP would not have been visible to the copyright holder. Most decent VPN clients include the option to kill all connectivity if the VPN session is lost, and better ones will allow you to kill all network connectivity from a specific application, or some will even terminate the processes for that application as well.

   If you were using a free VPN, then… you get what you pay for.

   > In my home country

   Go to your window and look outside. Are you in your home country? What happens there has no bearing on the way things happen here.

   > Every lawyer suggests settlement

   And you think anyone here is going to know better? They’re suggesting settlement for a reason. Remember that the alternative isn’t just a civil suit. The copyright holder can file *criminal* charges – and those charges carry a potential 2 year prison term.

7. I wonder, how you got reached and by who?

   The apartment I live gives me free internet, I simply connect my WiFi router and pum internet.

   I don’t event know who the isp is. However for all downloads I use vpn mostly and change the location from time to time.

8. Can I ask you what went wrong with your VPN? Were you torrenting/seeding?

9. was it the 3 episodes of Boku no Pico ? be honest with me my man I won’t judge.

10. Was this domestic material? I get the idea that Japan wouldn’t much care otherwise.

11. The ISP WILL provide your information whether you “ignore” the notice or not. The ISP is just informing you of what’s going to happen.

    I was involved in some litigation before (not over IP, but some idiot that malpractices and didn’t like what I had to say. It was dropped because his lawyer realized the more he dug into me, the more dirt was reveal about HIM.) Anyway, the guys lawyer got my info in the end. Just lawyer up and allow your lawyer to try to mitigate it.

12. So..the law states that if you shared something you can be sued. Someone has your IP linked to a downloaded file. If you used BIT or if it was a torrent file, then you are guilty in the eyes of the person holding the digital rights to whatever you downloaded. This can be the company that owns the film and/or the actors actresses in the film, as you have stolen their livelyhood.

    First they ask the ISP for your info. ISP asks if it’s okay to send it out and sends you a letter. Even if you deny it, if the ISP feels the rights holder has enough evidence ( hash and torrent file) then the ISP releases your data to the rights holder.

    The rights holders lawyer then contacts you requesting money based on how much they have lost due to your sharing of their copyrighted material. Currently in Japan, one movie and they ask for more than 500,000 yen. No, I didn’t put an extra zero there. If multiple…then more. Way outside of what just buying the movie would cost.

    There are lawyers in Japan that deal with this type of thing. Contact one of them or deal with the rights holders constantly contacting you.

    Torrent=sharing=crime. Even if you have sharing turned off. Good luck!

13. I just want to know was it something available for purchase in Japan from a Japanese licenser? Because if it was like House of the Dragon or something I would be interested to see HBO going that extra mile to try to screw with randos in Japan and having lawyers write in Japanese.

14. [Actual useful information](https://haruta-lo.com/column/i-received-an-opinion-inquiry-form-pertaining-to-a-caller-information-disclosure-request/#%E5%9B%9E%E7%AD%94%E3%81%97%E3%81%AA%E3%81%84) answering your question from a JP law site. Use Google translate if needed. I personally think the advice in the other thread about ‘I was hacked and I fixed it’ was the best. The main thing that dings you is SHARING it, since torrents share it with others.

    TLDR do not ignore it, answering it is better.

15. As of now they have 123.123.123.123 did something. They don’t know who is 123.123.123.123 , and it could be any one that used that IP address, they have Nooo name, now a dumb ass goes answering their call then they have a John Smith did something, do yourself a favor and act like it never happened, and do throw that letter in the recycle bin or trash but be nice to mother nature recycle.

16. Is this real? Japanese ISP actually looking through users data ? I’ve downloaded a lot of movies in Europe, in Japan, anywhere I go, games as well, never saw or even heard about ISP sending a notice to someone because of this. Can you maybe share your ISP so people know which one they shouldn’t pick?

17. If you used a VPN, how could this happen?

18. I remember I received a letter from my ISP. I can’t recall what it was exactly but along the same lines – sorry it was like 15 years ago. But I ignored it, and they called me and advised me to put my bittorrent client upload limit to minimum speed (maybe like 5 kb) and warned me if I dont comply, things will get serious.

19. Whatever the outcome, please, please post an update about how it turns out for you.

    There are a lot of questions asking for advice on this topic, but very few updates about whether people had to pay or whether these types of legal problems just go away.