Policies Related to Copyright Infringement

Copyright Infringement and Peer To Peer (P2P) File Sharing Policy

Copyright infringement is the act of exercising, without permission or legal authority, one or more of the exclusive rights granted to the copyright owner under section 106 of the Copyright Act (Title 17 of the United States Code). These rights include the right to reproduce or distribute a copyrighted work.

In the file-sharing context, downloading or uploading substantial parts of a copyrighted work, without authority, constitutes an infringement. Penalties for copyright infringement include civil and criminal penalties. In general, anyone found liable for civil copyright infringement may be ordered to pay either actual damages or “statutory” damages affixed at not less than $750 and not more than $30,000 per work infringed. For “willful” infringement, a court may award up to $150,000 per work infringed. A court can, in its discretion, also assess costs and attorneys’ fees. For details, see Title 17, United States Code, Sections 504, 505. Willful copyright infringement can also result in criminal penalties, including imprisonment of up to five years and fines of up to $250,000 per offense. For more information, please see the website of the U.S. Copyright Office at www.copyright.gov.

In order to comply with the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) Peer-to-Peer file sharing applications are restricted on the Helene Fuld College of Nursing’s computer networks.

To discourage the use of P2P applications, the frequently used P2P ports are blocked on our networks and restrictions are in place to prevent the installation of unauthorized programs on college’s computers. Students are not allowed to install any application on college computers. Technical support staff must be contacted if a student wants any application to be installed, and the support staff will determine if the application is appropriate and safe.

The College will take disciplinary actions against students who engage in illegal downloading or unauthorized distribution or exchange of copyrighted materials using the college’s information technology system. Disciplinary actions may include but are not limited to warning, and suspension of library and computer lab privileges.

Please click here to see a list of Legal Sources of Online Content.

Skip to content