Comments on: eBay Must Disclose User Identities In Response To 512(h) Subpoenas https://blog.ericgoldman.org/archives/2015/06/ebay-must-disclose-user-identities-in-response-to-512h-subpoenas.htm Tue, 21 Jul 2015 22:04:00 +0000 hourly 1 By: Adrian Lee https://blog.ericgoldman.org/archives/2015/06/ebay-must-disclose-user-identities-in-response-to-512h-subpoenas.htm#comment-1346 Tue, 21 Jul 2015 22:04:00 +0000 http://blog.ericgoldman.org/?p=14383#comment-1346 In reply to Ralph Haygood.

If this was the case, it would easily come out in discovery, and the case would be quickly dismissed.

]]> By: Ralph Haygood https://blog.ericgoldman.org/archives/2015/06/ebay-must-disclose-user-identities-in-response-to-512h-subpoenas.htm#comment-1312 Thu, 11 Jun 2015 00:34:00 +0000 http://blog.ericgoldman.org/?p=14383#comment-1312 I find this disturbing, because it’s so easy to impersonate people online. Anyone could create an account on some site in your name and make copyright-infringing posts. If a copyright holder complains and a post gets removed, that’s no big deal; you probably won’t even hear of it. But if a copyright holder gets the name, address, etc. associated with the account, which happen to be yours, even though you had nothing to do with creating the account or making the posts, you might find yourself the target of a legal proceeding. True, for such a proceeding to get very far, I presume/hope a court would demand stronger evidence connecting you to the infringement. However, at best, you’re in for a hassle, and a confusing and frightening one if you aren’t legally savvy. I imagine this kind of thing could even become a form of harassment akin to SWATting, which has become something of an epidemic recently. (Note that while email-address verification helps, not all sites do it, and a spoofer not using your email address could still use your postal address and phone number, which few sites verify.)

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