ACS:Law copyright file sharing claims, Gallant Macmillan - and probably some others along the way...

[scooby555]

no ive not i went to CAB and they said to ingore it so i did thats when the first letter came in, any chance any1's got a LOD they could send me a copy of id apreachate it, as ive not idea how to write 1

thanks

scooby

[youtube]

Whats bothering me about this is the lack of information about this monitoring software, bearing in mind that these NPO's are granted based on the evidence obtained from it, I wander if there is some kind of industry standard or quality requirments that this software is required to conform to? Surely there should be if it is used evidentually.

 

When they produce the evidence to the judge they pretty much say its not a direct accusation to the owner of the internet line but the release of addresses would help with their enquiries.

 

If there was 100% accurate method then illegal file sharing would shut down instantly, unfortunately there isn't. That is why this method is called speculative invoicing. There is a chance the person accused has downloaded the file and the threat of court action makes them pay up.

 

It even says in their letters they send out that they are not directly accusing you but word it very very well so it sounds like they are. Its a get out clause.

[zero_flight]

no ive not i went to CAB and they said to ingore it so i did thats when the first letter came in, any chance any1's got a LOD they could send me a copy of id apreachate it, as ive not idea how to write 1

thanks

scooby

 

I think that I saw a sample LOD posted on this site within the past few days. Have a look at the posts and I am sure that you will find it.

[mos law suit!!!]

Just found another site talking about gallant macmillan, heres what they have to say....

 

"If were unable to reach an agreement with the recipitent of our letters, and still consider that our client has a good claim, we shall sue. We recognise that its not appropriate to make threats of proceedings and then to not follow through with thoes threats in appropriate cases."

 

Take a look the site is called Torrentech!

 

Lets hope there just all talk!!!!!!!!

[youtube]

Scare mongering, lets hope they do try and sue some one. Immediate loss game over for all cases remaining for all solicitors. Not a chance in hell of it happening.

 

Well it could happen when the money starts to dry up and they are desperate for a win, they will look over all previous cases where clients have declined to pay and choose the case with the most chance of winning, just one last shot in the dark at keeping the scheme running. My view on the mater anyway.

Edited July 12, 2010 by youtube

[mos law suit!!!]

I hope so, ive been an absolute mess since thursday and thats only cos i got the letter!!

 

i sent my lod away to gm today so will just have to c what comes from that, anyone else sent one yet?

[benk103]

Has anyone on here paid a fine to either of these companies? If so what was the outcome?

[zero_flight]

Has anyone on here paid a fine to either of these companies? If so what was the outcome?

 

I would have thought that most people on this site would have not paid the claim.

[bottomsup]

If you have not already send a LOD, do not ignore them as it could make matters worse. What makes me laugh is why has it taken so long to get back to you. Probably to busy with their mass mailing.

 

Please could anybody explain why ignoring such letters would be a bad thing? There is a lot of discussion on here about the LOD's but not much about actually ignoring them in the first place - if their letters didn't arrive surely there is nothing to respond to.

 

Are there any disadvantages in ignoring?

 

Cheers

[HenriIV]

Are there any disadvantages in ignoring?

 

Cheers

 

Who knows? But where will it get you - unless you think they'll just give up after one letter. I should think that is extremely unlikely, for obvious reasons.

 

If you continue to ignore subsequent letters then they might decide to proceed to a Court appearance, aiming to get a default judgement, as you will have offered no denial or defence.

 

And if you had already ignored more than one letter, how would you justify that to a judge?

 

If you are NOT guilty, then you should issue a firm LOD (imo), or if you ARE guilty then offer a realistic settlement figure.

Edited July 12, 2010 by HenriIV

[tp123]

Please could anybody explain why ignoring such letters would be a bad thing? There is a lot of discussion on here about the LOD's but not much about actually ignoring them in the first place - if their letters didn't arrive surely there is nothing to respond to.

 

Are there any disadvantages in ignoring?

 

Cheers

The letters , however unreasonable they seem, are legitimate claims (although based on suspect evidence) made in accordance with The code of Practice for Pre-Action Conduct in Intellectual Property Disputes. This code requires that the "defendant" should provide a written response.

 

It's obviously up to the individual what they do but IMO should one of these claims ever get to court, a dim view would be taken by the Magistrates if the defendant had not , as a minimum, replied with a denial and hence discharged his duties to comply with the code of conduct.

[tp123]

Sorry, HenriIV had already answered while I was typing!

 

It's worth noting that Bridget Prentice MP (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State in Feb 2010) in a letter to Lord Young (Minister for Postal Affairs and Employment Relations) wrote:

 

"It may be helpful to say to recipients of a letter from ACS Law who are satisfied they have no liability whatsoever in respect of the issues raised, that it is open to them to inform ACS Law that they are not liable and do not intend to reply to any further correspondance, save to defend a claim should one be bought."

[queen-peanut]

i just want a decnts night sleep now, i'm so tired of worrying, i've done everything by the book, i have never downloaded anything without reading the T's & C's carefully, as for torrents, to be honest, i don't see the point, i'm a sucker for a CD. i'm going for a cry..........

[londonukguy]

hello people, i also got the letter last week friday. been watching this forum since then.

 

the song is also evacuate the dancefloor, the date they alleged i download this song on the 29/09/2009. 01:54:02

 

i have a few question.

 

i phoned up my ISP which is o2 and they say they have no records of them releasing my details. on there document it states that my isp is BE UNLIMITED anyone have information on this?

 

the court order/application which is dated 17 feb 2010 also looks very dodgy to me. has anyone phoned up the court to verify there court order/application?

 

i plan to write an LOD letter, but should i also get in touch with citizen advice bureau?

 

can i use this LOD example that user DANNY:BOI created or used, will there be a problem if i used this or is there another one i can use?

 

please make adjustment to the letter if needed

 

ACS:LAW

Andrew J Crossley

20 Hanover Sq,

London,

W1S 1JY todays date

 

RE: Letter of Claim Dated (insert date) concerning “insert file in question as mentioned in the letter” (“The Work”)

Dear Sir,

I am writing in reply to your letter of claim dated (insert date) stating that my connection was used in an infringement of copyright, using peer to peer networks which allegedly occurred on the date (insert date) and concerns the work “insert file in question as mentioned in the letter” (“the work”).

You assert in your letter that the infringement was apparently traced to my internet connection. I note that I am not personally being accused of the infringement, as you have no evidence to this effect.

Nevertheless, I categorically deny any offence under sections 16(1) (d) and 20 of the CDPA 1988. I have never possessed a copy of the work in any form, nor have I distributed it, nor have I authorised anyone else to distribute it using my internet connection. I note that section 16(2) of the act requires a person to either directly infringe copyright, or authorise someone else to do so. I have done neither, and you have not provided any evidence of my doing so.

As such I cannot and will not sign the undertakings as provided by you.

As you seem to be perfectly aware, it is impossible to link an IP address to a particular person or computer without further detailed analysis, which requires a level of expertise I do not possess. Furthermore the delay in your sending of a letter of claim precludes any such analysis. In your letter you state that “it is unlikely that a simple denial (without further explanation) will change our view of the circumstances”, unfortunately I do not have the expertise to provide a detailed explanation. As such I can only conclude that I have been a victim of foul play.

As far as I am aware, there is no law in the UK under which you could properly hold me responsible for an infringement occurring via my internet connection, without either my knowledge or permission. I would be interested to hear your legal basis for attempting to do so.

Please inform your clients that if they wish to pursue this matter, I will seek to recover all my costs to the maximum permitted by the Civil Procedure Rules. The signature of the undersigned confirms the statement provided to be accurate and legally binding under the terms required by pre-action protocol in civil law.

Yours Faithfully

Your name

 

thanks in advance

Edited July 13, 2010 by londonukguy

[Time on my hands]

i just want a decnts night sleep now, i'm so tired of worrying, i've done everything by the book, i have never downloaded anything without reading the T's & C's carefully, as for torrents, to be honest, i don't see the point, i'm a sucker for a CD. i'm going for a cry..........

 

The initial letters are frightening, but you'll eventually come to see that it's all bark and no bite. Remember, like all bullies these lawyers want you to be afraid so that you'll pay up, but this is their only weapon. As long as people stand up to them they'll fall back.

 

Remember - no one has yet been taken to court in a contested case, and this has been going on for years.

 

These lawyers are continually sending out new batches of claims - they're relying entirely on breaking you down with the first one or two. Their entire business model is based on NOT having to go to court.

[johnsmith999]

I originally posted this on Slyck, but i think it is just as relevant here

 

come on Guys and Girls, lets show this new company what "People Power can do", if we all sent an email or letter to Gallant McMillan's other clients, then they may exert some pressure on them to stop this mass mailings. Why would the likes of

Clients of Gallant McMillan

 

Serviceair

Kookai

Ted Baker

Liberty

Long Tall Sally

Claims Direct

Hunter

and Ministry of Sound. -( not that i would buy their Shi**

Want their business associated with this "Legal Blackmail" I am sure that given enough bad press, Gallant McMillan will go the way of Tilly Bailly and Irvine and Davenport Lyons.

 

ACS Law never had a reputation to loose, but Gallant McMillan have.....

 

It takes years to gain a good reputation, but seconds to lose it !!!!

 

Lets try to get them to lose it.

 

[benk103]

Does anyone know of anyone (or they themselves) contacted any lawyers/solicitors on this matter? I haven't managed to yet and the longer it goes on the more worried I'm getting!

[andydd]

Does anyone know of anyone (or they themselves) contacted any lawyers/solicitors on this matter? I haven't managed to yet and the longer it goes on the more worried I'm getting!

 

As this is a totally new grey-area, a lawyer will prob be unable to give specific advice anyway, but you will be a lot poorer.

 

Just send a LOD. Nothing else is needed.

 

Andy

[amlott75]

We received a letter yesterday from ACS:Law about a copyright infringement for Guru Josh - Infinity, their client is DigiProtect.

 

Reading all of the posts on here it would seem that most people have always received a 1st letter which gives more details, IP address, date of offence etc but we have only received the 2nd letter, stating about their previous letter and noting we havent responded.

 

We really dont know what to do, should we reply or not ? The letter states we have 14 days to respond.

 

I would like to know how they got this information in the first place. If they obtain the information from our internet provider surely they would need a court order or something to obtain personal details. I did call our provider and they said had they received any letter from a solicitor they would have a legal obligation to provide the information but dont keep records of these so called letters. It worries me greatly that they would just hand out the information to someone claiming to be from a legit legal practice.

 

Any advice would be greatly received.

[Caimbeul]

P2P or peer to peer file as its known is continuously ransacked by firms threatening to sue etc... some have and some have not.

 

Let's be clear on this and this to everyone who has had a letter.

 

In order to have been deemed ( whether you have really or not ) responsible to breaching copyright specifically with a torrent file as states the following needs to have happened:

 

you need to have a software client, utorrent for example, you have to download this.

 

you need to access a website that hosts torrent files like thepiratebay

 

you need to open the file and select the software client to download it.

 

You can't do this by accident, and it isn't simply a case of 'the file just appeared' you have to have done it! simple.

 

So because there is a huge debate as to if this is a [problem] or not, let's look at it this way... do you use torrents? if yes then maybe you should be worried ofcourse unless you can prove it and if you don't use torrents then there can be NO WAY you are liable, again unless you have had a hdd replacement can be proved within reason.

 

I don't file share I don't need to but let's say you do, I cant stress how highly important it is you understand the SHARE part, its one thing to download it, its another to share the download after it has finished.

If it was me, any downloaded files would be moved straight out of the shared folder and stuck elsewhere, and the torrent file deleted.

Also any wireless security can be hacked unsecured or not. In the IT world we use terms like piggybacking where your relying on someone elses connection to browse and download. Or you can interrupt data packets and capture logon details. Please also bear in mind there next to no chance of someone bothering with your wifi if it is security protected.

Why target yours when lots of others cant be bothered to secure their connections.

Also I will point out it can be deemed an offence not to have a password as you are deemed to be broadcasting.

 

To summarise, if you don't use Torrents and none of the above makes even the most highly tuned brain cell tick over then send a LOD and forget abut it.

But if you use Torrents for gods sake stop the sharing! this is where you will get the big boys coming after you under the DCMA etc!

 

Fair enough to a point but there are many perfectly legal uses of torrents. it is also not illegal to download torrent software or use torrents. Just because you use them and software associated with them does not brand you a criminal. Its just like saying because you wear a hoodie you must be involved in unsavoury activities. Its generalisation/stereotyping/prejudice/Pidgeon holing or whatever you want to call it.

 

Ha!

 

Nobody needs to be formatting hardrives, as this is a civil matter they can't demand your pc for forensic examination. Anyway an IT forensic team would be able to recover the data from a drive after formatting at low level. The only way to truly prevent recovery it is to physically destroy the disks medevil style (a hammer and screwdriver) and lose the bits in a scrap yard.

 

Not true. data can be recovered from a HDD fragment measuring a tiny size. There are some low level formatting tools available such as SecureErase (by the Center for magnetic recording Research) which uses the hard drives built in formatting function and is pretty much the best thing out there aside from turning it to powder and recently US Government approved for high security (or something like that). read the FAQ on the site. That said, almost everyone on here (myself included) are indeed innocent and you have therefore no need to worry about using such a tool as 1) you have done nothing and 2) they have no right to inspect your machine.

 

So they actually are monitoring data transfer, and not just getting the IP addresses of the swarm? That's a more honest strategy than what I assumed these companies were up to

...And highly illegal i would think. A blatant breach of privacy. Even government s get into trouble for doing that kind of thing without a court order or something.

Edited July 13, 2010 by Caimbeul
something went wrong?

[Caimbeul]

We received a letter yesterday from ACS:Law about a copyright infringement for Guru Josh - Infinity, their client is DigiProtect.

 

Reading all of the posts on here it would seem that most people have always received a 1st letter which gives more details, IP address, date of offence etc but we have only received the 2nd letter, stating about their previous letter and noting we havent responded.

 

We really dont know what to do, should we reply or not ? The letter states we have 14 days to respond.

 

I would like to know how they got this information in the first place. If they obtain the information from our internet provider surely they would need a court order or something to obtain personal details. I did call our provider and they said had they received any letter from a solicitor they would have a legal obligation to provide the information but dont keep records of these so called letters. It worries me greatly that they would just hand out the information to someone claiming to be from a legit legal practice.

 

Any advice would be greatly received.

 

If you didnt do it, send a letter of denial. If you really want, ask them to provide information on how they obtained this susposed "evidence" and your personal details. I would avoid this though as you are opening up an avenue for further dialogue. In all likellyhood they will ignore formal requests for information even though they are obliged to provide if it is requested (they ignored me).

[tp123]

Not true. data can be recovered from a HDD fragment measuring a tiny size.

 

Thats why I said lose the bits?

 

Anyway we are getting away from the main point I was trying to make, which was that as this is a civil case, people don't need to worry about destroying/formatting drives.

[londonukguy]

no one got any answers for my question?

[zero_flight]

hello people, i also got the letter last week friday. been watching this forum since then.

 

the song is also evacuate the dancefloor, the date they alleged i download this song on the 29/09/2009. 01:54:02

 

i have a few question.

 

i phoned up my ISP which is o2 and they say they have no records of them releasing my details. on there document it states that my isp is BE UNLIMITED anyone have information on this?

 

the court order/application which is dated 17 feb 2010 also looks very dodgy to me. has anyone phoned up the court to verify there court order/application?

 

i plan to write an LOD letter, but should i also get in touch with citizen advice bureau?

 

can i use this LOD example that user DANNY:BOI created or used, will there be a problem if i used this or is there another one i can use?

 

Yes you can use that LOD

 

I still can't believe that they are still using the same Court order from the beginning of the year, or is it because they can't get any new court orders .

[tp123]

 

i phoned up my ISP which is o2 and they say they have no records of them releasing my details. on there document it states that my isp is BE UNLIMITED anyone have information on this?

 

Can't help with this.

 

the court order/application which is dated 17 feb 2010 also looks very dodgy to me. has anyone phoned up the court to verify there court order/application?

 

This court order is genuine, it's just been photocopied many times.

 

i plan to write an LOD letter, but should i also get in touch with citizen advice bureau?

 

Up to you, I have read on here that CAB have not been that helpful.

 

can i use this LOD example that user DANNY:BOI created or used, will there be a problem if i used this or is there another one i can use?

 

please make adjustment to the letter if needed

 

It's up to you adjust the template to suit your needs. They may write back saying "they don't accept your letter as it is based on template available on the internet" There is no legal reason as to why you shouldn't use a template. Anyway their letters are templates.

 

I would also recommend spending some time reading through this thread - all of your questions are answered within.

 

Regards