Friday, 09 Apr 2010
The Digital Economy Act: some tips for employers
The much publicised Digital Economy Act passed into law yesterday after it was controversially included in the pre-election scramble to enact legislation called the ‘wash up’. It includes well-publicised and contentious provisions designed to combat online piracy, including disconnection.
Although it will be at least a year before any internet connections can be cut off under these provisions, various other provisions will become active in the coming months. These include warning notices from internet service providers (“ISPs”) if your internet account has been allegedly used to infringe copyright online. The ISPs will be required to keep records of which accounts are subject to reports, and, if the number of reports against an account reaches a particular threshold, this may lead to further enforcement measures.
Another controversial measure in the Act which may be activated in the near future involves blocking websites that are deemed likely to be used for copyright infringement.
Implications
The Act therefore has implications for anyone who provides internet access to others, such as employers and wi-fi providers (like cafés, airports and shared workplaces). Under the new Act, the account holder is the subject of any warning letters and is the person whose identity may be revealed by ISPs to copyright owners, who could then sue for infringement. The whole account can potentially be disconnected if the “technical measures” provisions come into operation in a year or more from now.
It could also affect those who operate websites, especially those that can be used to exchange or access files – whether their intended purpose is for copyright infringement or not.
Steps you should take
There are therefore some steps that should be taken by everyone to help protect against enforcement actions under the new rules:
- if you have wi-fi, make sure access to it is secured
- if you give employees internet access at work think about reviewing usage policies and consulting your IT support to limit access to certain problematic websites
- educate yourself, your family and your staff about what is legal and what is not legal in terms of accessing music, films and games online (as well as other copyright works)
- if you run a website, take measures to limit the chance of it being used for copyright infringement
Wi-fi has been identified as a particular risk, as an unsecured account can be easily used by neighbours and passersby. It is simple to put in place password protection for access and more protective measures are also available. Remember to always change the default password provided by your ISP, as hackers tend to know these and can therefore still access your account.
There is still much controversy surrounding whether the disconnection measures will ever come into force and further debate is expected on whether they are compliant with fundamental rights. There are a lot of questions still to be answered on whether the new Act will actually work, due to the ease with which users can avoid detection and with which website blocks can be bypassed.
However, it is prudent to get your internet accounts and websites in order now to minimise any reports or blocks issued against you and to help avoid the risk of disconnection in the future.