
Muninder Adavelli
Updated · May 31, 2023
Torrenting is legal in the USA. It is simply considered a Peer-to-Peer (P2P) file-sharing method. It becomes illegal when the file being shared is copyrighted material.
In this article, we will discuss what happens when you are caught torrenting copyrighted content and how VPNs can help.
Copyright laws are in effect to protect copyright holders and creators from the illegal use and distribution of their work. For example, 1998’s Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) addresses the relationship between copyright and the Internet.
The DMCA updates the US copyright law to deal with digital content. Here are its three major updates:
Torrenting copyrighted material is a form of “distribution.” Even if you torrent anonymously, you can still be at risk of breaching these laws. Distribution is an exclusive right of the copyright holder.
How about the downloading of copyrighted materials for personal use? Let’s answer that in the next section.
Individual downloaders are not safe from copyright infringement laws with the enactment of the No Electronic Theft Act (NET Act). It prohibits downloading of copyrighted files even without aiming for monetary or commercial benefits.
Before the NET Act was enacted in 1998, infringement must be for “commercial advantage or private financial gain.” Merely uploading or downloading files doesn’t fall into that criteria.
With the NET Act, the threshold for criminal liability settles to “more than $1000 worth of retail value” for infringed materials within “180 days.”
This applies whether the materials were used for profit or not. It also specifies the penalty of up to 5 years imprisonment.
In 2020, the US had the highest number of visits to media piracy sites worldwide, with around 12.5 billion visits. The possibility of getting caught torrenting exists as anti-piracy campaigns are enforced to counteract this trend.
Now, let’s discuss how you are going to get caught.
Copyright trolls are third-party companies that do business by monitoring torrenters who illegally download copyrighted content. They monitor public trackers to look for individual IP addresses, then inform the ISPs hosting these IPs.
Production companies usually hire them to sniff out pirates on their behalf. They sometimes join torrenting “swarms” to pick out IP addresses.
Internet service providers (ISPs) store users’ traffic data for some time. Comcast maintains their users’ activity records for 6 months, while AT&T stores them for a year.
Technically, all your online activities are laid bare to ISPs. That includes your use of torrent sites — unless you use a VPN. This information could lead to a copyright infringement notice from your ISP.
If you’re caught torrenting copyrighted files, you’ll receive a warning in the form of a copyright infringement notice from your ISP. Based on the US laws, an IP address is not a person, but the notice will be addressed to the primary account holder.
After a few warnings (3 to 6 “strikes” depending on the ISP), given that you didn’t follow them, additional actions can be expected, such as:
In case of a lawsuit, you should immediately seek legal advice. You can get help from volunteer organizations with expertise in these cases, like the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF).
File sharing through torrents doesn’t rely on a central server, but being decentralized doesn’t mean complete anonymity. Torrent files from public tracker websites like PirateBay are unsafe from the prying eyes of ISPs and copyright trolls.
The safest way to maintain anonymity while torrenting is through a VPN or virtual private network. It hides your IP address through the VPN servers and encrypts your traffic making it unrecognizable even with your ISP.
You can also use Proxy to torrent anonymously but VPNs are one of the easiest methods to use.
Let’s look at some VPNs you can use for safe torrenting in the next section.
We’ve listed the VPNs with the highest speed performance, optimized servers for torrenting, and robust encryption. These VPNs are:
VPN Provider |
Description |
NordVPN(Price: $3.99 per month) |
NordVPN is a reliable VPN that uses 256-bit AES encryption for airtight security. It has a strict no-log policy preventing long-term monitoring from ISPs and copyright trolls. It also features a killswitch and optimized servers. Both are important when downloading for long hours. |
ExpressVPN(Price: $8.32 monthly) |
ExpressVPN is known for being fast and secure, with military-grade 256-bit AES encryption, strict no log, and a killswitch. All servers are optimized for torrenting. It’s just a bit more pricey than its competitors. |
SurfShark(Price: $2.30 per month) |
SurfShark is an affordable VPN that guarantees speed and security. It also uses 256-bit AES, a no-log policy, and a killswitch. All servers are optimized for P2P connections. |
You can also check this article for other ways to download torrents anonymously.
Torrents are just a means to an end. There are many cases where torrents are used legally, such as distributing public domain media like old books and movies or anything without copyright.
P2P decentralized file sharing is more economical than maintaining centralized servers. Independent creators or even companies often use it to distribute updates.
Whatever the use of torrent you might intend, it’s better to play it safe by using a trusted VPN.
Torrenting itself is legal everywhere. What’s illegal is the file sharing of copyrighted content.
Yes, if the game has a copyright. However, many independent game creators use torrents to distribute their games, which are absolutely legal.
No, on an individual viewer basis. According to the Protecting Lawful Streaming Act of 2020 (PLSA) within the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021, “infringing public performances” apply to those who host the streaming of copyrighted material for “commercial advantage and private financial gain.” But this in no way encourages watching pirated streams.
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Muninder Adavelli
Updated · May 31, 2023
Updated · May 31, 2023
Muninder Adavelli
Updated · May 31, 2023
Muninder Adavelli
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