Since the law does prescribe a penalty or punishment, but instead, a claim for damages, one must not fear to lose their residency permit, said Henning Werner, a lawyer from the consumer protection office. If in doubt, not only the person illegally downloading movies or music but also the owner of the Internet connection is at fault: Both are responsible. People who make Wi-Fi available to others, like neighbors or roommates, must expect to be held accountable. Anyone who is caught must expect fines of several hundred to thousand euros. The IP address is used to identify the network which has been used for the online exchange. There are law firms that are specialized in sending written compensation claims to offenders. Illegal file sharing violates German law. If one would indeed like to use/share an article/video/photo, it is safe to add a link to the original material (as shown below in this article). One cannot simply distribute content from other sites unless it is through share buttons provided for different social media services. One can only share photos or clips that you have created yourself. It is safe to assume that downloading music on a personal mobile phone always costs something – after all, the musicians want to earn some money.įile-sharing platforms, like ones that use programs such as BitTorrent or eMule to transfer data, are particularly sensitive. In addition to watching movies or downloading music, one should be aware of what is allowed in social networks: There are copyright rules even for YouTube, Facebook or blogs. Downloading a movie for free is almost always illegal and any films currently showing in movie theaters are generally not available legally on the Internet. So if one has already discovered that the latest Hollywood blockbuster three days after its premiere is on the Internet, one should be skeptical about it. Illegal downloads: What should one watch out for?Īs a general rule: Anything that costs money in a department store is not free on the Internet. These laws also apply to students and visitors.
In many cases, however, this is illegal and people who use such websites can be prosecuted for copyright infringement. Or one can quickly download their favorite band’s latest song to their mobile phone. German laws are strict and refugees should also beware of wrongful use. Even many Germans fall into the trap: A movie is downloaded from a random site and then watched in the evening after work. Many online file-sharing services are illegal. Such downloads can results in huge fines to jail terms. Watching a movie on the Internet or downloading a song is often prohibited. One needs to be aware that illegal downloads (Torrents or otherwise) are punishable as per German law.
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