Cease and desist letters, warnings from the Dean of Students to stop illegally downloading copyrighted material, have been popping up in students’ inboxes since the beginning of the school year. If a student uses a download agent like LimeWire or Kazaa to download or share files while on the UNCW network, their computer’s IP address could give them away. If the student receives a second complaint, he or she faces disciplinary probation and a loss of internet access privileges.

“The proliferation and simplicity” of file-sharing technology makes it easy to download music and movies for free, said Zachery Mitcham, Information Security Officer. But now universities receiving federal funding are mandated to “aggressively combat” illegal file-sharing.

The Higher Education Opportunity Act was signed into law in 2008, and enforcement of the regulations therein officially started in July 2010. The HEOA requires that colleges devise a plan to “effectively combat the unauthorized distribution of copyrighted materials” by users of its network as well as offer alternatives to illegal file-sharing, according to EDUCAUSE, an association that provides IT resources for higher education institutions.

“A download agent sets your computer up as a Wal-Mart,” Mitcham said. “Everything Wal-Mart has is available to you and to everyone else.” Illegal downloading is “as much stealing as is walking into Wal-Mart, picking up a CD, and walking out without paying for it.”

One of the most well-known cases of prosecution for illegal downloading was that of Jammie Thomas-Rasset by the Recording Industry Association of America. Thomas-Rasset was fined $1.9 million for downloading a grand total of 24 songs, according to Wired News.

“It’s not worth it,” said Mitcham. “[She] could have bought the whole studio for that.”

However, music and movies are not the only sensitive materials. Mitcham said there have been issues with copyrighted games and books as well. He added that tuition may be affected in the future if illegal file-sharing at UNCW cannot be kept in check.

A list of legal, RIAA-approved music sites can be found at: http://www.riaa.com/toolsforparents.php?content_selector=legal_music_sites

A comprehensive list of legal sources of online content can be found at: http://www.educause.edu/legalcontent