RIAA wants Government Spyware to delete Illegal Content

Saw this on another site and had to link it here

http://digg.com/d31OkQs

Copyright holders are now lobbying to be allowed access to your computer to delete content they deem bad.

Big Brother is watching you. Actually, it's the RIAA and the MPAA, especially if you're parked on a BitTorrent client. The Electronic Frontier Foundation reports that both organizations--along with a few others--want to take the file-monitoring process a huge step further by infiltrating consumer PCs and deleting the infringing content off their hard drives. How? Through "anti-infringement" spyware developed and enforced by the government.

This is no joke.

"There are several technologies and methods that can be used by network administrators and providers...these include [consumer] tools for managing copyright infringement from the home (based on tools used to protect consumers from viruses and malware)," reads a caption in a joint comment (pdf) filed by the MPAA and RIAA.

The joint comment goes on to suggest other means of copyright enforcement including a mandatory scan on all internet connections to interdict transfers of illegal content, physical searches at all borders of personal media players, laptops, and USB sticks. There's even an indication that the parties want to enforce international bullying to force other countries to put similar policies in place.

But there's more. The comment said that the copyright holders want the FBI and Department of Homeland Security
to fork over agents--at the taxpayer's expense--so that they can guard the media prior to distribution.

"The planned release of a blockbuster motion picture should be acknowledged as an event that attracts the focused efforts of copyright thieves, who will seek to obtain and distribute pre-release versions and/or to undermine legitimate release by unauthorized distribution through other channels," the statement reads. "Enforcement agencies (notably within DOJ and DHS) should plan a similarly focused preventive and responsive strategy. An inter-agency task force should work with industry to coordinate and make advance plans to try to interdict these most damaging forms of copyright theft, and to react swiftly with enforcement actions where necessary."

How far will they go?

This is so stupid and invasive it isn't even funny.
What's next, armed agents at any house with internet access?

What the flying fuck. They're treating potential income like it's a target for assassination! Border checks? Excuse me? I refuse to be treated like a damn criminal for owning an mp3 player, for one. Furthermore, to be depleting the government's resources to protect an investment is downright ridiculous.

Copyright theft may be a problem, but these measures are overboard, by a long shot, and I take offense.

More people do illegal downloading than there are people who smoke or do drugs. Even if the government does allow this, they aren't going to be able to arrest half the population of the USA.

This is beyond stupid, and I have enough faith in the government to know that they cannot even think to humor such stupid measures. Even non-pirates would be against this. The RIAA and MPAA are just a bunch of money whores who can never get enough. The people who proposed this bill probably wrote it in their "house-well, one of [their] houses."

For one, it is invasive, and as much as Spooky wants me to believe, I cannot believe that the FBI even has that much shit on monitoring citizens that aren't on some high watch list.

btw: http://www.riaaradar.com/

Ha ha ha, bitches, I don't think so. The gov't and big business are so keen on capitalism, right? Sink or swim on your own merits, right? Then why should any one get an FBI security force- what the RIAA basically is asking for- to guard against theft? It's a risk of buying and selling. Tough shit, fat cats. If corporate America wasn't bleeding the consumer and worker white to begin with to pay for their million dollar yearly bonuses, maybe we wouldn't feel the need for piracy. Fuck them. Yarrrr!

This is a fart salad.

Furthermore, DEFINE ILLEGAL CONTENT. It's pretty cut and dry now, sure, but that definition has far too much room to expand. The proposed technology leaves too much room for abuse!

It's the first step in Trent Reznor's Year Zero scenario, happening in front of us.

Read about this the other day, fuck the RIAA.

edit:
Rhymes so sick, they call me hypnotic.

Eh, it probably started years ago. Anyway, the RIAA talks out of its ass all of the time and didn't the MPAA create a phising sites to catch pirates? Both have a terrible track record of inflating and creating the truth.

Lol @ Firerain. (:

This will never get passed.

This will never get passed.

I pretty much agree with this. Don't think there's any chance that this could get passed, so nothing to worry about.

In fact, one could argue it's good news for pirates, as it's making the RIAA look incredibly fucking stupid.
(They want to install spyware on every PC? Ahahaha)

This will never get passed.

that's true, and if this is RIAA -trying- to stop piracy, they've obviously got no idea what they are doing and I for one am not threatened by this in the least.

I just find it utterly stupid.

Maybe it won't, maybe it will. I'd bet it won't, but I'm still insulted that some lobbyist thinks it's okay to try to impinge on my privacy.

It can't happen lol. Not sure why they thought of this.

This is a really high risk maneuver. I almost find it more likely that it has been released by some anti-RIAA lobby.

I mean. It'll probably just take one false positive for them to get sued for potentially billions.
It could easily be considered it a deliberate and malicious attempt to delete some legit software. The spyware nature makes it harder for them to argue that it was an accident.
The potential losses can be great indeed

The internet providers will definitely fight against having to scan all connections since it will consume resources. I imagine that this point is the least risky though.
The international bullying is really a bad idea. I can imagine China openly fighting against it and many countries backing China rather USA.
Just consider the reason Google vs. China. Diplomatically it would be unwise to stress the situation further with an initiative which will probably turn other countries away from USA.

The free security is simply greed. It makes perfect sense to protect valuable goods, but why should the tax-payers pay?
They could just as easily pay for it themselves and raise the ticket prices.
This is probably the part they will have the most trouble with and I wouldn't be surprised if they didn't get it through purely because of this part.
It is also the reason for my doubt about the legitimacy. I find it hard to believe that they are that stupid.

I beleive it possible because I am losing have lost faith in my government's desire to support my rights.

I believe it possible because I am losing have lost faith in my government's desire to support my rights.

That's right. They don't care.