Recently, the news has been buzzing about the hundreds of cases filed by the adult film industry against individuals for downloading adult content online. These cases illustrate a powerful tool available to attorneys to gather information before filing a lawsuit.
In these cases, the content provider uses its investigators to identify an Internet address (IP address) to which the download was made. Then, they bring suit to force Internet service providers such as AT&T and Comcast to identify the person using that IP address. Before disclosing the information, the Internet service provider notifies the user that a request for disclosure of his or her identity has been made based on a claim of copyright infringement for downloading of pornographic materials. In most cases, the user hires an attorney and quickly settles in order to keep from being named in a suit.
