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The Lowdown on Downloads
August 12, 2008
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Summary
What are you and your family downloading from the Internet? Music? Videos? Games? Software programs? Are the music and videos you’re downloading pirated or in violation of a copyright? Are the games and software you’re downloading real or are they counterfeit? Do any of your downloads contain viruses that can destroy your computer and its contents or spyware that can steal your identity and your personal information?
For many of us, even the tech savvy, these aren’t easy questions to answer. And while we can’t answer them for you, we can offer some insight and tips to help you download safer, smarter, and in accordance with the law.
Pay for music or face the music
Almost everyone – especially tweens, teens, and college students – downloads music. Some of it we pay for. Some of it we don’t.
If you buy music online from iTunes , MP3.com , or other music services, it often comes with anti-piracy technology known as Digital Rights Management or DRM (music from the record company EMI is not DRM-protected). In general, DRM allows you to copy the music onto your MP3 player, a couple of computers in your home, and a backup CD – all for your own use. Whether the music is DRM-protected or not, you still can’t give or sell it to others either on CDs or over the Internet. If you do, you’re breaking the law and could be subject to prosecution.
If you download or share music on file-sharing or peer-to-peer (P2P) networks such as Kazaa or LimeWire, you’re also breaking the law. And you’re opening up your computer to potential attacks. The music file you download may include viruses or spyware. Or if you let others on the P2P network download music from your computer, it is relatively easy for a hacker to gain access to other files on your computer and others on your home network.
That goes for video and games too
Like music, most videos and games are copyrighted. Also like music, if you don’t pay for them, you’re asking for trouble. Pirated videos and games are illegal and may be contaminated with viruses or spyware.
Do you receive emailed videos from friends? If the video is copyrighted, they’re breaking the law by sending it and you’re breaking the law by downloading and playing it.
Playing games on the PC has been popular since the very first PCs were made. Kids do it. Adults do it. It’s fun and, for kids, it can be educational too. Kids, especially, like to copy games and give or sell them to friends. There’s even software they can download to break the copy protection on games. Pay for them now or you may pay later.
Many people, kids included, play games online and in networks. Some of these networks operate similarly to P2P networks, allowing each player to see the other’s next move instantly. That can make your PC more visible and accessible to others, which can lead to intrusions.
Beware of pirates and counterfeiters
The relative high cost of application software seems to make it a favorite target of pirates and counterfeiters. Software pirates may pass around their software, install disks, or make illegal copies for friends or for sale. Those activities are illegal. Counterfeiters usually operate on a larger scale, illegally copying and packaging software for sale. Sometimes it turns up in stores. More often it is sold on the Internet at enticing discount prices.
You may not discover it’s counterfeit until it’s too late. For example, you install it and try to register it, only to learn that it’s not real. Or you may install it and your PC crashes. Or you install and use it, only to find large, unexplained charges on your credit card. The counterfeiters may have stolen your credit information when you bought the software, or they may have installed spyware on your computer along with the counterfeit application. In other words, beware of a price that is too good to be true.
Counsel your kids and pay for protection
Talk to your kids. Make sure they understand that downloading, sharing, and using copyrighted software – music, videos, games, or applications – is not only illegal and punishable, it could damage your PC, your personal information, and your financial well-being.
Also, make sure your PC is protected by updated Internet security software, such as Norton Internet Security™ or Norton 360™ . In addition to being a smart thing to do anyway, it’s your best protection against the hackers, pirates, and counterfeiters you or your kids may bump into inadvertently.
