Internet Copyright, Privacy and Ethical Issues

What is "copyright"?

Copyright is a series of national laws and international treaties intended to protect "intellectual property" - the work of people's minds: works of literature, art, music, or other creative efforts. The goal is to see that people who create these works can be rewarded for their labor. 

In some ways, copyright law is similar to laws that forbid breaking into someone's house and stealing their possessions. One important difference is that intellecutal property has to be shared in some form in order for the creator to be rewarded - it can't be locked up. A work of art must be displayed to be appreciated. A play must be performed, a movie must be shown, music must be played in public, a novel must be published before the creator will receive the rewards.

Because of the need to make intellectual property public, copyright law gives the owner the right to say what other people can do with with their creations: chiefly, to what extent they can make copies without rewarding (paying) the owner. Copyright law contains limits to what the owner can demand, and in different media the limits may differ.

Copyright law is very complex, and it must be noted that nothing in this document should be considered legal advice. It is intended simply as educational and informative. If you would like more detailed information, a very good place to start is WCC's Library copyright information center: http://www.wccnet.edu/copyright/. The ultimate authority on copyright in the U.S. is the United States Copyright Office (http://lcweb.loc.gov/copyright/), part of the Library of Congress (http://www.loc.gov/).

How do I know if something is copyrighted?

Any work of intellectual property, including writings, sound recordings, computer software, movies and videos, is automatically protected by copyright law as soon as it exists in some "fixed form". No special procedure is required, and no mark or statement has to be made to protect a work.

Before 1989, U.S. law required a notice of copyright and the date. The copyright symbol © was often used as part of the notice...but it is no longer necessary!

Copyright owners can take a number of steps to protect their work, including...

• Using the copyright symbol ©
• Including a notice of copyright, including reminders of potential FBI involvement
• Registering the copyright with their national registry - in the U.S., the Copyright Office. 

Do current copyright laws apply to the Internet?

If someone owns the copyright to a work, what rights does that give them?

The owner of a copyright has the right to: 

• To reproduce the work in copies or phonorecords; 
• To prepare derivative works based upon the work; 
• To distribute copies or phonorecords of the work to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending; 
• To perform the work publicly, in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and motion pictures and other audiovisual works; 
• To display the copyrighted work publicly, in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and pictorial, graphic, or sculptural works, including the individual images of a motion picture or other audiovisual work; and 
• In the case of sound recordings, to perform the work publicly by means of a digital audio transmission.

(U.S. Copyright office, Circular 1)

How long does a copyright last?

Current laws extend the duration of copyright for life of the author plus 70 years for works published after January 1, 1978. 

Is there anything I can do with a copyrighted work?

Yes. You can reproduce a work or part of it, as long as what you do is acceptable under the "Fair Use Guidelines":

• Purpose and character of the use: 
• Are you reviewing the work? 
• Quoting it as a small part of a research paper?
• Using a part of it for educational purposes?
• Nature of the copyrighted work: 
• Is the work intended for commercial publication?
• Would using it violate anyone's privacy?
• Amount and substantiality of the material 
• Are you using only a small part of a large work?
• Does what you copy of the work form only a small part of what you are creating?
• Are you "letting the cat out of the bag" or giving away a secret?
• Effect of the use on the potential market of the work: 
• Will your copy lower the profits of the copyright owner in any way? 

• Lessig et. al in Standford Law School's Legal Scholarship Network, lessons 8, 9, 10, and 11.
• Stanford University Libraries maintain a Fair Use Web site with links to lots of detailed explanations at http://fairuse.stanford.edu/

What does it mean to say that a work is “in the public domain”? 

The owner has signed off their rights to the copyright, or copyright protection has expired. For anything on the Internet, we must assume something is copyrighted unless there is a statement placing the work in the public domain.

Some Internet sites contain copyrighted material whose owner has specifically allowed people to copy it. This does not mean the material is necessarily in the public domain! We must check for terms and conditions of use. For example, some Web sites allow you to copy their art and display it on your site, as long as a link to their site is included in yours. The art is still under copyright, and we are obligated either to respect the terms, or not copy the art.

How private is my email?

Not very. Consider your email messages to be about as private as a postcard. Though the chances of your email being read by others is slight, it is always present. 

That's because of the way the Internet sends information. Each message packet is sent through one or more computers that look at the packet header and decide what is the best route to use in sending it to its destination. At each of these computers, the packet may be stored temporarily on disk while waiting for a clear line to send it on its way. While it's there, those who operate the routing computer could look at the packet.

In addition, when the email reaches its destination, it may be archived, so that even if you delete it, it can still be retrieved. It was the backup copy of email messages that evenually led to Oliver North's conviction in the Iran-Contra affair (1985-6).

Is it an invasion of privacy if my friend sends a copy of my email to a newsgroup without my permission?

Yes! Although email is not very private, it is important to respect the wishes of others (especially your friends!) with regard to making their email public. 

Even forwarding an email to one person could upset your friend if the content is at all personal. Better ask first!

Is a Web "cookie" an invasion of my privacy?

On the Web, a "cookie" is a small data item that contains information about you and your computer. In general, they contain two types of information:

1. Information that is available to all Web servers: your IP address (so they can send Web pages back to you), the type of browser, computer, and operating system you are using.
2. Any information you choose to give as you fill in on-line forms.

Cookies are placed on your computer when you visit many commercial Web sites. When you return to that site, the server will ask the browser if you have any cookies for it, and your browser will send back the cookie left the last time. When a Web site asks for cookies it left you earlier, this is known as first-party cookies. Using first-party cookies, many e-commerce sites can recognize their customers when they return. Cookies contain information that is encrypted so others can't read the content. This helps insure your privacy, though it also means you can't tell what information the cookie contains.

Who's the "second party"?
>  You are!  <

The potential for invasion of privacy comes primarily from the use of third-party cookies: cookies which are left by one site on your computer, and picked up by another site later. The goal of this practice is to create a list of places many individual users visit; this list can be sold to marketers for targeted marketing. On possible scenario is this:

1. You visit Web Site A. Site A displays advertising from Ad Agency B.
2. With the permission of Web Site A, Ad Agency B leaves a cookie on your computer, indicating your IP address and the fact that you visited Web Site A.
3. Later, you visit Web Site C. Site C also displays advertising from Ad Agency B.
4. With the permission of Web Site C, Ad Agency B retrieves its cookie and puts into its database the facts that your IP address has visited both Site A and Site C.
5. As you visit more sites, Ad Agency B builds a list of sites your IP address has visited.
6. Ad Agency B purchases a list of IP addresses that has the names of individuals and organizations to whom the IP addresses belong.
7. After matching the IP addresses with names, Ad Agency B sells its list to other marketers.

One company that is alleged to use this strategy is DoubleClick.com (http://www.doubleclick.com/us/).

The success of this strategy depends on having IP addresses that are permanently assigned to one individual or family. This isn't the case if you use a dial-up modem, or if you use an Internet connection belonging to a large organization. And even if you are assigned one IP address consistently, your Internet Service Provider might not release your name to inquirers.

You can control how your browser deals with cookies:

• In Netscape Navigator, go to the Edit menu and select Prefrences > Privacy & Security > Cookies. You will have a choice of how to handle cookies.




 

• In Internet Explorer, go to the Tools menu, select InternetOptions, and click the Privacy tab. You can use the privacy slider to select a package of privacy options, or use the Advanced button to select specific options. (If have have set up various security zones, you will need to specify each one separately.)





In Mozilla Firefox, from the Tools menu select Options, then click the Privacy (padlock) icon. Scroll down to the Cookies item and click the + sign to display the options:

What is "spam"? 

On the Internet, spam is any email that is sent to large numbers of people who really don't want to get it. The legal term is "Unsolicited Commercial Email" (UCE). The CAN-SPAM Act of 2003 (http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/buspubs/canspam.htm) regulates the distribution of Spam.

It is said that using the word spam in this sense is derived from the skit in Monty Python's Flying Circus, in which a couple is offered breakfast with far too much of something they don't want - Spam.

What is "netiquette"?

Netiquette is the etiquette or common courtesy that should be used for polite interaction over the Internet.
 

Should I use capital letters in email?

Sending email in all capital letters gives the impression that you are raising your voice at the e-mail recipient. 

Sending email with no capital letters looks very informal, even sloppy. It's OK to send email to your friends with no capitals, but not very good sending it to someone you want to impress - a teacher, supervisor, prospective employer, newspaper editor, government officer, etc. It's like the clothes you wear: if you don't mind wearing your night clothes while you're with someone, it's probably OK to send that person email with no capital letters!