Law Vibe

Federal Goverment Seizes 150 Domain Names Dealing Counterfeit Goods

Michael — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 00:24:30 +0000

Authorities in the United States have seized 150 domain names which, according to allegations, deal in counterfeit and copyright goods.

“Operation In Our Sites” is the domain name seizing initiative by The Department of Justice (DOJ) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that has already seized 350 domain names in total since the start of this operation.

What makes these domain name seizures more shocking is that it falls directly on Cyber Monday, which is the largest shopping day online for the year. In Congress, they are currently debating whether to allow private rights holders to have the ability to block advertisement traffic and financing to websites they believe are violating their trademark and copyright rights.

“Through this operation we are aggressively targeting those who are selling counterfeit goods for their own personal gain while costing our economy much-needed revenue and jobs,” said Attorney General Eric Holder. “Intellectual property crimes harm businesses and consumers, alike, threatening economic opportunity and financial stability, and today we have sent a clear message that the department will remain ever vigilant in protecting the public’s economic welfare and public safety through robust intellectual property enforcement.”

The reason why federal authorities can seize these domain names is because Verisign (runs .com and .net) and the Public Interest Registry (runs .org) are organizations based in the United States. Under current laws of civil forfeiture, the individual losing the property must prove that whatever was seized was not used to commit crimes.

The message found in .gif image file on the seized websites reads, “This domain name has been seized by ICE – Homeland Security Investigations, pursuant to a seizure warrant issued by a United States District Court under the authority of 18 U.S.C. 981 and 2323,” and then continues to list the penalties involved. These .gif image files found on the homepages of the seized domain names have gotten 77,000,000 pageviews.

Federal authorities have said that undercover agents were able to buy counterfeit handbags, sunglasses, shoes, movies, golf clubs, and sports jerseys, which lea to the domain name seizures.

Here is the full list of the 150 domain names that have been seized:

100jerseys.com
100jerseys.net
10nfl.com
17nfljerseys.com
17nflshop.com
2010-2011newlouisvuittonbags.com
2010footballjerseys.biz
2010footballjerseys.com
2010footballjerseys.net
2010nflshop.com
autocd.com
b2bjersey.com
b2cjersey.com
bclike.com
bizjerseys.com
bootsforwomenonsaleonline.com
buyjerseysonline.org
buyjerseysworld.com
buysonshop.com
c2cjersey.com
c2cjerseys.com
c2cjerseystore.com
cheapestjerseysale.com
cheapestjerseysworld.com cheapjerseysite.name
cheapjerseysite.net
cheapjerseysite.org
cheapjerseysite.us
cheap-louisvuitton-replica.com
cheapmlbjersey.com
cheapmlbjersey.net
cheapnfljerseyshop.com
cheapnflnhlsell.com
cheapnflshop.com
cheap-nflshop.com
cheapnflshop.net
cheap-nflshop.net
cheapnflshop.org
cheapnflshops.com
cheapnhljersey.com
cheap-nhljersey.com
cheapnhljersey.net
cheap-nhljersey.net
crazyjersey.com
dhljerseys1.com
dhlnfl.com
dhlnfl.net
discountedjerseys.org
discountedjerseysale.com
discount-louisvuitton-handbag.com
discount-uggboots-sale.com
discount-uggboots-saleonline.com
dvdsetonline.com
dvdshopdvd.com
edgefans.com
eejerseys.com
emsnfl.com
finejerseys.com
ggjersey.com
ggjerseys.com
golfsuno.com
googlejersey.com
googlenfljerseys.com
groupsjerseys.com
handbags-eluxuryin.com
handbagslot.com
jerseychannelone.com
jerseyget.com
jerseygreatdeal.com jerseynfljersey.com
jerseyonsale.com
jerseyorder.com
jerseyorder.net
jerseysbyjerseys.com
jerseysbyjerseys.net
jerseyschannel.com
jerseysroom.com
jerseysusa.com
jerseysworld.org
jerseywholesaler.com
louisvuitton-bags-forcheap.com
louisvuittonun.com
luxurysum.com
luxuryum.com
luxuryun.com
lvsalehandbags.com
m1bjerseys.us
mlbcardinalsshop.com
mlbjerseys.us
mlbjerseyswell.com
myjerseyshop.com
nfl01.com
nflhere.com
nfljerseysupply.org
nfljerseyswhole.com
nfljerseysworlds.com
nflnhlsell.com
nflnhlshopping.com
nflsearched.com
nhljerseyswell.com
nhlmore.com
nhlnfljersey.com
nhlwell.com
officialpumashop.com
okupsnfl.com
okupsnfl.org
online-nflshop.com
online-nflshop.net
p90x-workout-program.org
picknflshop.com
projerseysale.com
pumabig.com
pumaoutlets.net
pumashoesoutlet.net pumasportshs.com
reebokjerseys.net
reeboksite.com
rejerseys.com
rejerseys.net
replicaoakleysale.com
replicaoakleysale.org
saintsjerseysmart.com
shauntinsanitydvd.com
shopsbag.com
texansjerseystore.com
tntjerseys.com
tntnfl.net
uggbootsclearanceoutletstores.com
ujerseysale.com
upsjers.com
upsjerseys.com
upsjerseys.org
upsjerseys8.com
upsnfl.com
upsnfl.org
upsnfljerseys.com
upsnflshop.com
usa-wholesalejerseys.com
usnflclub.com
uspsjer.com
uspsnfl.com
uspsnfl.org
valorjersey.com
valorjerseys.com
verycheapjersey.com
verycheapjerseys.com
whitesoxjerseysmall.com
wholesalecheapdvd.com
wholesalejerseys-usa.com
wholesalejerseys-usa.net

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Two Illegal Tactics Bill Collectors Use to Terrify You Into Paying

Michael — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 18:58:38 +0000

Can they arrest you for not paying a bill? Bill collectors are now outsourced globally just like any other customer service. And since they are not in the United States, they are ignoring standard American bill collection laws, procedure, and protections.

What are your greatest fears about bill collectors? There are two illegal tactics and one terrifying collection tactic that no one wants to deal with. They are someone:

Calling your relatives about your debt
Calling your boss about your finances
Threatening you with arrest if you don’t pay, and involving your relatives.

The last is the terrifying bill collection tactic some offshore collectors are now doing. One client who filed bankruptcy has been receiving repeated calls from a collector who will not identify himself, nor the company he is collecting for. He has repeatedly told her the sheriff will arrest her the same afternoon for not paying the bill. He also says that if she does not pay, her mother and sister will be subpoenaed to testify against her. He ignores requests to provide verification of the debt as required by American law. He has her name, address, date of birth, and even her social security number.

Although we do not know the creditor he is calling for, the amount of the debt corresponds closely to an online payday loan her husband took out before filing bankruptcy. That may be why he has her personal identification information.

There are two possibilities here. First, he is actually collecting for a real creditor. I highly doubt this possibility because saying they will arrest you for not paying a bill violates the Fair Debt Collection Practices Law, the bankruptcy automatic stay, and the bankruptcy discharge injunction. The second and most likely possibility is that the whole thing is a scam. I say this because the way they he is collecting would subject both him and the company he is working for to serious civil liability if he could be found out. Just a plain, simple crook out to steal from you.

This scammer is looking for the quick hit. The phone number he calls from does not correspond with any real address. I have communicated with a number of bankruptcy attorneys nationwide, and they all report their clients are getting the same kind of calls for bills that have been long discharged.

The bottom line is be very careful about the information you put out about yourself online, and if you get a collection call from someone saying he will arrest you for not paying a bill, especially for a bill you know you no longer owe, be smart, and ignore the caller. He is just trying to use a terrifying bill collection tactic to scam you out of your money.

[thanks to Bill Balena and Esparta via CC]

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Mexican Drug Gangs Kidnapping Computer Hackers & Programmers

Michael — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 13:00:24 +0000

The fact that the Internet is not controlled or policed has brought on some interesting ways criminals have taken advantage of the situation online. The Mexican drug cartel has found a way to make money on the internet in addition to their wealth from dealing in illegal drugs. They are now kidnapping hackers and literally forcing them to hack into people’s individual accounts at large banks. The hackers are then told to keep the money and then deliver the money to specified drug dealers.

The hackers have been getting into online banking accounts like checking accounts, savings accounts, and more. These hacking attacks are taking place in the world’s biggest banks in the United States, Russia and Europe on a daily basis. It is believed that if the drug dealers find that there is a profit to be gained in the abuse of cyber criminals then we’ll be seeing these “hacker kidnappings” much more often.

Dmitry Bestuzhev, of the Russian antivirus company Kaspersky Lab, says, “In many cases cyber-crime is not punished at all, despite all the efforts.So, it’s another source of income for drug dealers. Kidnapped (hackers) have to keep the money stolen from online banking, from credit cards and then pass it to drug dealers. Despite all the security efforts, it’s quite difficult to ensure that the user is protected, because the security on the user’s side depends on the user. I strongly believe that if drug dealers see (money) in abusing kidnapped cyber-criminals, they will keep following the same line.”

Banks always tout their safety but is it really safe? Larger banks tend to use very sophisticated equipment that has tight security, perhaps safer than using a smaller bank. The smaller banks that can’t afford the most cutting edge security hardware and software generally use security equipment that is more cost effective.

In order to keep your online banking secure you should see to it that you have the very best in anti-virus software and anti-malware programs installed on your computer. In addition, now with the advent of mobile devices like smartphones and tablets you can do your online banking on the go. This may be convenient but communication through a mobile device can be picked up off of insecure wifi networks and your personal information can be at risk. Another reason not use a mobile device for your online banking is that the device is small and can easily be lost. If you do your online banking using this mobile device and your password is stored inside the device app, the finder now has all the information he or she needs to your identify and your bank account.

Your account can also be easily accessed when you make purchases online. There should be a good security system in place when you buy online – always make sure the website is displaying the lock symbol with an encryption notice – often the URL will start with https instead of http. If there is not a good security system in place by the website then your debit or credit card information is at risk.

Blackmarket for Stolen Passwords and Computer Viruses

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Rupert Murdoch Phone Hacking Scandal: News of the World Shutting Down

Michael — Sun, 21 Aug 2011 13:00:47 +0000

Rupert Murdoch, the 80 year old Australian-American whose full name is Keith Rupert Murdoch, is said to be the most influential man in the world. As the CEO and Chairman of News Corporation, he is considered one of the world’s most powerful people with a financial worth of 6.3 billion dollars (USD).

He started his path to wealth with one very small newspaper in Adelaide, then went on to start different publications in Australia. He expanded his News Corporation to the United Kingdom, the Asian market, and the United States. In the United States, in 1986, he began the Fox Broadcasting Company.

Murdoch claims that the rumors of his empire crumbling is all lies and that he is not losing his grip on his media empire. He is the center of a phone hacking scandal that took place originally in the United Kingdom where Murdoch’s employees were involved in hacking into voice mails. In the United States they were alleged to have bribed law enforcement officials to obtain telephone numbers of families of the victims of the 9/11 terrorist tragedy.

In the United Kingdom, Murdoch apologized for the scandal that involved two of his top executives. The apology was written as a full page ad in the Wall Street Journal. He further claimed that the apology and fixing the mistakes are only the first steps. Another apology that was not signed by Murdoch offered to cooperate with the police. Chris Bryant, a British lawmaker and one who campaigns against media abuse, has stated that he feels a public relations consultant told Murdoch what to write in his apology and that it sounds more like a confession than an apology. He doubts the public will accept the apology.

This telephone hacking scandal has placed the British police under pressure for accepting money and other bribes for illegal actions. Telephone hacking was reported to the police as far back as the year 2005 but nothing was done about it. In fact, Wallis, a man that was arrested in the telephone hacking incident, was hired by the police as a consultant for a wage of 24,000 pounds for working two days a week.

The News of the World newspaper, which is owned by Murdoch and which is now closed, was said to have hacked into thousands of telephones including that of a thirteen year old girl that had been murdered. Murdoch apologized to the parents of the little girl which was akin to a confession that the News of the World had indeed hacked into the voicemails of the murdered girl. This caused Murdoch to shut the paper down.

James Murdoch, Rupert Murdoch’s successor and son, had taken over the operations in Europe of the News Corporation just when the telephone hacking scandal was beginning. James and Rupert will face a tough questioning by Britain’s Parliament.

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Wikileaks Founder Julian Assange Arrested and Faces Rape Charges

Michael — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 13:00:19 +0000

Julian Paul Assange, the founder of Wikileaks has been arrested for allegedly raping two women in Sweden. The native Australian claims the allegations are all motivated politically and that he is not guilty of raping the women. Assange leaked diplomatic information through his many websites and is therefore fearful that he may be extradited to the United States.

The women said that they did not have consensual sex with Assange and that he forced his attentions on them, in one instance violently. Assange was in Sweden giving a lecture when he was invited to the homes of the victims. The Court of Appeals has heard the women’s testimony and Assange is now appealing the decision of the district Judge ordering his extradition to Sweden. He is wanted for questioning in Sweden with regard to the rape allegations. One of the women claimed that Assange said he wanted to impregnate women. However, he allegedly said he preferred to impregnate virgins because he would then be assured of being the first to impregnate them.

Assange is not without his supporters who have set up barriers and carried banners in front of the British Royal Courts of Justice. They were asking for Assange to be freed. Assange is currently being held under house arrest at the Ellingham Hall in Bungay, Norfolk, UK.

Another woman that had consensual sex with Assange asked what they would do if she got pregnant. He allegedly told her that Sweden was a great place to raise kids. She also claimed she was railroaded into telling the police about the attack. All she wanted was for Assange to be tested for possible sexually transmitted diseases.

Representing Assange is QC Ben Emmerson who states that there was consensual sex between Assange and one of the women. The woman claimed to have been attracted to him when she saw him appear on television. She said that when she was only partially awake she had consensual sex with him.

Prosecutors in Sweden also charge that even if Assange had consensual sex, since he allegedly didn’t wear a condom, this is against Swedish law. If you have consensual sex in Sweden without a condom, it is punishable by a term of imprisonment of a minimum of two years for rape.

The other woman said sex with Assange was definitely not consensual, and that he treated her violently; he had broken her necklace, tore off all her clothing, and then held her down in such a way so that she was not able to move away from him.

The names of both women were withheld by the Court. Judgment was reserved in this case by Lord Justice Thomas and Mr. Justice Ouseley. A warrant for Assange’s arrest was issued in August of 2010, and he has steadily claimed he did nothing wrong. When the prosecutor said there was no evidence of rape, Assange left the country some eight days later. However, there was another European warrant issued for his arrest on September 1, 2010.

Assange continues to assert that the claims against him are motivated politically in order to eventually extradite him to the United States to stand trial for his Wikileaks actions as the United States government was shocked at the mass leads of diplomatic information.

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Federal Poker Indictments Against The 3 Largest USA Poker Casinos

Michael — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 13:00:40 +0000

Federal investigators have taken control of the domain names of the three largest online poker companies in the United States: Poker-Stars, Full-Tilt-Poker and Absolute-Poker.

The reason for the domain name takeover is due to their continuing serving casino players within U.S. jurisdiction despite the ban raised on internet poker and gambling, which has resulted in accusations of fraud against financial institutions.

Billions worth of gaming revenue were dramatically impacted after these $3 billion laundering penalties was charged against the companies and defendants. Eleven defendants were charged in New York, including the Poker-Stars, Full-Tilt-Poker and Absolute-Poker founders with fraud, laundering and illegal gambling.

The big three poker casinos are not being singled out in the FBI’s cross-hairs, as five other internet domains hosting poker games were taken over as well. Company assets and their payment processors assets were also included in the complaint and actions were issued in relation to their bank accounts.

As internet gaming has became more and more popular, online poker rode along with a huge burst of popularity despite it’s legality in the USA remaining ambiguous. It is now clear after these actions by the USA government that proving online gambling to USA citizens is a federal crime, causing much anxiety among other casinos serving customers in the USA.

The poker websites that had their domain names taken over now show the warning message “It is also a federal crime to knowingly accept, in connection with the participation of another person in unlawful Internet gambling, credit, electronic fund transfers, or checks”. According to the indictments, fraudulent methods are said to be used by poker companies, including tricking banks to accept credit card payments from these players.

The charges include information on how companies wormed through the 2006 ban, as money received from gamblers are masked and reflected as purchases for online goods or other products that are nonexistent.

Among those who were charged were Isai Scheinberg and Paul Tate (Poker-Stars), Raymond Bitar and Nelson Burtnick (Full-Tilt-Poker), and Scott Tom and Brent Beckley (Absolute-Poker).
Despite knowing that their actions were against the U.S. law, the defendants are said to be aware of their actions, took the risk and continued the scheme until the indictments came down.

Payment processors who were charged along with them were Ryan Lang, Ira Rubin, Bradley Franzen and Chad Elie. They were charged after posing for the poker companies to U.S. banks and doing the cover-up for them by creating pseudo-corporations and websites.

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Mass P2P Lawsuits: Names of Copyright Infringers Must Now Be Released

Michael — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 13:00:15 +0000

A Washington DC federal judge has changed the fate of P2P (Person to Person file sharing) lawyers, favoring them where mass file-sharing lawsuits are concerned. The judge has let cases move forward and required ISPs to provide names of those involved to be released on schedule.

Common arguments for those opposing such lawsuits include the following reasons:

Defendants are “improperly joined” by not acting together breaking the law
People involved in the cases are outside the jurisdiction of the federal court where they are being sued
The availability of the First Amendment (Right to Anonymous speech)

Judge Beryl Howell of Washington DC rejected the three arguments above – at the moment – in favor of the P2P lawyers who filed the mass lawsuits.

The ruling combines three pending mass lawsuits. The judge also ruled that it was acceptable for a multitude of unknown defendants to be sued noting that they are “logically related”. The judge justifies that individual filing of such cases would cost too much as well as limit copyright holders in protecting their rights. Furthermore, defendants can later on prove themselves to be separate from the rest, but that it would be easier to join them together at the beginning of the investigation process.

Jurisdiction is still vague, where geolocation only tells where these defendants might be. Tools used to look them up are still inaccurate and whether personal jurisdiction would be the best way to go is still up for debate. In the process of the lawsuits, defendants will be given a chance to file for counter motions if they are not within that jurisdiction.

In regard to the reasons why the three opposing arguments were dismissed, the judge ruled the First Amendment was a weak argument since there was only minimal “expressive activity” involved. In favour of the copyright holders, they have good reasons why they want to seek for these violators.

Benefitting from this decision was the US Copyright group, who brought the lawsuits forward. Although separate cases may later be required, as well as the huge amount involved in filing them apart from the time and effort that will be involved, the early stage of litigation was a good indication that despite that only a single judge so far has agreed for such cases to push through, the opportunity paves way for rights holders to seek for justice.

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Law School Exam Format: How to Use Old Tests to Your Advantage

Michael — Fri, 27 May 2011 13:00:58 +0000

Before you rush into making a super outline, anticipate the exam format.

A closed-book exam requires a simple, blackletter law outline that you can readily memorize in your head.
An open-book exam might require an more extensive outline with case holding keyed to a particular issue, and cross-referenced with a Table of Content organized by legal issues.

Look at the practice questions or old exam questions. Are the exams issue-spotters, short answers, or lengthy multiple-issue fact pattern requiring extensive case planning and legal analysis?

Issue spotters: meticulously index your Table of Contents by issue and spend time anticipating what type of legal issues are likely to come up on the exam. Group the issues that are likely to appear together, and list the black letter laws or case holdings as well as exceptions/limitations, if applicable.
Short answers: memorize the key fact patterns and practice writing black letter laws that get straight to the point. Work on writing short paragraphs explaining how the facts apply to the case at hand and the likely outcome of the case (or strength of the client’s case).
Lengthy, multi-issue fact pattern: this requires a lot of imagination and creativity. Cluster similar cases and/or rules and see if you can create a story that began with one legal issue followed by subsequent legal questions. Try to solve this story and come up with legal arguments to support your argument and counter legal arguments. Poke holes at your own theory.

Studying by first year subjects:

Civil Procedure – Learn how to apply the FRCP rules in different stages of litigation.
Criminal Law – Learn to apply the theories and memorize the criteria (mens rea, actus rea) for various types of crimes such as homicide, larceny, battery, assault, and any applicable excuse or justification (e.g., test for insanity, self defense, emotional distress, defense of others, etc.)
Property – Learn the black letter rules of present, future, concurrent estates, landlord/tenant, covenants, equitable servitude, easements, and adverse possession.
Constitutional Law – Learn to apply different Constitutional analysis (e.g., Equal Protection, Due Process), tests and standards (e.g., strict scrutiny, intermediate scrutiny, reasonable standard), separation of powers (enumerated powers and limitations of each branch), and federalism.
Contracts – Learn to spot the issues in various stages such as formation of contract, party’s rights and responsibilities, mistake, excuse, impossibility, and breach. Remember the rules governing the parties (minors, incapacitated, deceased, merchants-UCC, consumers), types of contracts (personal service, goods, bilateral, unilateral), special obligations (loyalty, secrets of the trade), and conflicts of law (which state rule governs). Pay attention to remedies and whether the contract is flawed or unenforceable due to ambiguous language or mistake.
Torts – Learn about the black letter laws for intentional torts and negligence.

[thanks to shelley's case via cc]

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Attorney Evan Stone Prevented From Filing Mass Lawsuits in Texas

Michael — Mon, 16 May 2011 13:00:22 +0000

There will be no more mass lawsuits in Texas for Internet file-sharing after the mass lawsuits of attorney Evan Stone. Stone, a Texas attorney from Denton, filed individual subpoenas for each individual violating anti-piracy law. After convincing the anime distributor FUNimation to use the same technique he was using with Lucas Entertainment on gay pornography torrent cases, Texas has now decided to deny multiple filings of lawsuits.

With the 16 pending cases filed in the Northern District of Texas, 13 of them have anonymous defendants and have been acquitted. Stone is now faced with re-filing “individual complaints” against them within 30 days, adding up to $4,550 worth of filing fees, apart from the time spent putting together the paperwork for each of them.

Judge Ferguson states that the cases filed for animation company FUNimation cannot be proved to be related to each other or that they were done as a group in the infringement suit. They were done individually and therefore should be filed individually.

This meant that for Stone, only 1 from the 1,337 filed was left.

Judge Ferguson goes on to say that there is not enough evidence to prove that just because the individuals all used BitTorrent, in other words utilizing a common tool for file sharing, this does not necessarily bind them together. The judge justifies further that each defendant would most likely have a different defense strategy against the charges.

After much success for Stone, this new development has become a huge problem for his business. In fact, the only case that was not dismissed by a judge was one that Stone himself dismissed. This was the very case where he issued subpoenas without approval.

In a personal e-mail to Paul Levy of Public Citizen, Evan Stone assures him that despite the roadblocks recently put up in his way, he will continue to help his clients to seek justice against online piracy of their products.

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Evan Stone’s Battle Against Gay Porn Movie Piracy on Torrent Sites

Michael — Wed, 11 May 2011 13:00:43 +0000

Evan Stone, an anti-piracy lawyer from Texas, has started his campaign against P2P users illegally sharing gay porn via torrents. He has filed over 4,500 cases against gay porn sharers and studios, possibly filing every case in Texas.

Stone gives judges IP address lists for them to write subpoenas to Internet provider, who then have to provide the names and addresses of the subscribers owning these IP addresses. Once the lists are acquired, settlement letters are sent to the file sharers to indicate the amount needed to prevent Stone from filing a named lawsuit against them. These lawsuits could cost around $150,000 per copyright infringement count.

Stone claims that his crusade is aimed to protect the artists. His crusade began with gay pornographic movies – it has now spread to the anime community.

Evan Stone Begins His Crusade

Stone’s crusade began when he started a small record label that was Internet-based and artist-focused. He aimed at having a 50-50 split with his artist, but the label soon failed. They were overcome by the Napster file sharing program and had to close down the business.

Having a degree in film and five years experience as an app developer, his skills were more than adequate to trace and be in pursuit of net-based illegal users. When he later attended law school, he specialized in entertainment law and soon became the in-house counsel for FUNimation. As his duties as legal counsel, he sent take down notices to anime distributors and moved forward with legal actions against some. Usually, just flooding the file sharing websites with fake files posing as real anime movies was their way of ensuring that the copyrights were not violated.

The downside of this was, for torrent sites, they are mostly overseas and cannot be prosecuted due to jurisdictional problems.

Stone then also joined Locas Entertainment in 2010, who aimed to stop piracy of their gay-porn materials. This venture showed significant results.

In September 2010, client Mick Haig Productions filed a lawsuit against 670 file-swappers, but the identities of these file-swappers are yet to be identified. The only thing they held were ISPs of violators.

Evan Stone Pushes Forward

Stone made a mistake of sending out unapproved subpoenas to users. The cases were dismissed, but Stone made grudging comments about how the judge, as well as the defense attorneys who opted to represent the unknown users, were “…renowned for defending Internet piracy and renowned for their general disregard for intellectual property law.”

Stone considers himself as different from the rest of the lawyers in his field. His vast knowledge of the entertainment industry, as well as the Internet and specifically of BitTorrent, allows him inside knowledge in filing separate lawsuits to those specific people who are working together, as well as in isolating users who have been violating the intellectual property law.

After trolling sites like isohunt.com, kickasstorrents.com, and nyaatorrents.org, Stone’s investigator found 1,337 IP addresses to use in the case. The work paid off in favor of FUNimation. Each user with the One Piece episode having the file “b305c19f8e8bdab5e39b33a4ffc364a12beb110b” was sued.

As an interesting twist, Stone’s logo for his Copyright Defense Agency is similar to the East India Company Crest – which hired “mercenaries” which seafaring pirates were deathly scared of. For Evan Stone, his logo is a symbol of the anti-piracy movement he’s spearheading.

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