A Note on Illegal Downloading


From Donald J. Welch, Vice President, Information Technology and Global University Chief Information Officer

A large percentage of people who use the Internet have downloaded music or movies. Most of the individuals who download these files—through paid services, file-sharing applications, or peer-to-peer networks—are aware of how prominent the issue of illegal downloading has become.

The University's stance on this issue is simple: using your computer to download or distribute copyrighted material illegally is impermissible, and you should not do this on or off NYU networks. Be aware: some applications for downloading music, movies and other files actually turn your computer into a server, allowing it to be used for distributing copyrighted material. If you are doing illegal downloads or distributions now or have done so, you must stop.

Complaints, under the U.S. Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) of 1998, come to NYU via agents employed by the copyright owners to look for DCMA violations. When a copyright complaint is received, the student responsible for the computer or device connected with the complaint is notified by email and sent a copy of the complaint. The student is asked to review NYU's policies, and to confirm in writing that s/he will abide by them. If the student does not respond, his/her network connection is blocked. If there are repeated incidents, the matter then is referred to the student judicial process. A range of penalties is available within the judicial process; the specific penalty depends upon the result of that process and may include suspension of account privileges. If the complainant believes you are involved in illegal downloads or distribution of copyrighted materials and submits a valid subpoena to NYU seeking your identity, the University will comply with the subpoena and furnish your name and contact information to the complainant's lawyers.

Federal copyright law itself includes a range of penalties, from $750-$30,000 per infringed work, or as much as $150,000 in statutory damages, if the infringement is deemed "willful". See Copyright Law of the United States of America. A claim of "fair use" can be used as a defense against a claim of infringement, see Limitations on exclusive rights: Fair use (PDF), the NYU guide to copyright law as it relates to academic research, teaching, and publication, NYU's Copyright and Fair Use resource, and NYU's Statement of Policy and Guidelines on Educational and Research Uses of Copyrighted Materials (PDF). There may also be criminal penalties for willful copying of a work for profit or financial gain, or if the work has a retail value of more than $1,000.

As communities of scholars and learners, research universities—such as NYU—have two primary missions: to educate students and to create knowledge. This latter mission involves the production of original scholarship and research. Accordingly it is accompanied by an enormous respect for proper recognition being given to the creator of those ideas and knowledge. In higher education, it is considered a grave act to take another's work without permission or attribution. At NYU, which also has large and renowned programs in the arts, this respect extends to the creation of new art.

The Internet has brought unimaginable access to information and extraordinary flexibility and opportunities for exploration and communication. NYU wants you to take advantage of all that. But, just as you abide by certain standards of behavior for scholarship and for University life, so, too, should you abide by high standards when it comes to the intellectual property of others on the Internet.

Last updated: November 2, 2021. Last reviewed: January 10, 2024.