RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT represents EVERY movie copyright troll.
This is what I know so far about RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT (rightsenforcement.com) and the clients they are representing.
RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT is a reverse-engineered ‘evil twin’ of CEG-TEK. I assume they are even a more advanced version of CEG-TEK (2.0), where they have likely taken CEG-TEK’s system and improved it to gain insight into the accused downloaders by using unethical malware, website scripts, and even illegal methods — “anything to gain an advantage.” (I do have reasons for saying this.)
Carl Crowell is behind the company. He is a known copyright troll and is apparently the puppet master behind most of the movie-based “John Doe” copyright infringement lawsuits filed across the US by his team of local counsel.
RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT is the pre-lawsuit settlement arm of his copyright enforcement machine. This pre-lawsuit mechanism uses automated DMCA abuse / copyright infringement notices to send settlement requests directly to subscribers through their ISPs.
WHAT ISPs ARE KNOWN TO BE WORKING WITH RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT?
ISPs known to be working with RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT are:
- AT&T,
- CenturyLink,
- Charter,
- Comcast,
- COX,
- Frontier,
- Hawaiian Telecom,
- Optimum Online,
- Time Warner Cable,
- Verizon, and
- Windstream.
RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT settlement demand letters require that accused recipients visit his rightsenforcement.com website and pay $300 per instance of infringement, per title (this can be negotiated down by an attorney).
WHAT IS THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN YOUR ISP AND RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT?
Click here for a detailed answer.
Quick Answer: There are three reasons an ISP will work with a copyright enforcement company such as RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT:
1) BECAUSE THEY ARE THREATENED TO COMPLY with the DMCA statutes,
2) BECAUSE THEY PROFIT FROM THE RELATIONSHIP, and
3) BECAUSE BOTH HOLD HANDS to reduce piracy on their networks.
Most likely, the relationship between Carl Crowell and the ISPs is 1) a relationship of force, threats, and control.
Again, click here for the full answer.
WHAT ARE THE MOVIE TITLES FOR WHICH RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT HAS LICENSED TO SUE?
Click here for RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT’s list of known movie titles from which they have and will likely sue.
UPDATES: This list of movies (copyright holders who are signing on with Carl Crowell’s copyright trolling copyright enforcement model) continues to grow. As of July, 2017, I have written about this twice already:
- “RIGHTSENFORCEMENT (NEW MPAA MOVIES GONE COPYRIGHT TROLL),” written on 4/28/2017, and
- “RIGHTSENFORCEMENT – NEW MOVIE TITLES (JULY 2017 UPDATE),” written on 7/18/2017.
I have listed the list of titles in the linked article (click here) based on the the list of movies listed on the RIGHTSENFORCEMENT.com website. I even took screenshots from that website (pasted below) so that you can view the images of the movies — that way, you’ll have a ‘heads up’ to learn which lawsuits will be filed for which movies in the coming months (they are methodically going through that list).
WHAT IF I ALREADY RECEIVED A DMCA NOTICE AND IT EXPIRED?
*IT IS NOT TOO LATE.* Click here for an answer.
Hint: The copyright holders are given a 3-year statute of limitations to sue individuals for copyright infringement. However, pretty quickly after your 30-day deadline expires (or however long RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT will allow you to settle before taking down the ability to settle), you will probably receive a second letter — this time addressed from one of their lawyers — indicating that “because you did not settle, now we want more money.” That second-tier settlement amount will probably be significantly higher.
Again, click that link to get a more detailed answer.
SHOULD I IGNORE THE RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT DMCA VIOLATION NOTICE?
Click here for an answer.
Short answer: Because there are MANY ‘COPYRIGHT TROLL’ ATTORNEYS filing lawsuits across the US and working for Carl Crowell (the owner of the RIGHTS ENFORCRMENT website and likely puppet master for all of the movie-based copyright infringement lawsuits across the US), it is likely a VERY BAD IDEA to ignore this.
Again, click that link to get a more detailed answer.
IS IT SAFE TO LOG IN WITH MY CASE NUMBER AND IP ADDRESS ON THE RIGHTSENFORCEMENT.COM WEBSITE?
Click here for a detailed answer.
Short Answer: Absolutely not. Logging into Carl Crowell’s RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT website will not only create a record that you were given the chance to settle for $XYZ amount, but there are also likely trackers and barbs built into the website which can dig into your computer and determine private things, such as what IP address you are coming from, where you are physically located (based on the geolocation of your IP address), what the MAC address is of your computer, what your operating system is, etc.
***And, if you do not have your javascript off and Adobe Flash capability turned off, RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT can dig deeper into your computer to determine what files you have installed on your computer, what software programs you have installed on your machine (e.g., do you have bittorrent installed?), and their website can run scripts (akin to apps or mini-programs) in your browser to reveal many other private things about you.
WHY DO YOU KNOW ALL THIS?
RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT is a reverse-engineered clone of the CEG-TEK website and DMCA abuse / copyright violation system. I spent close to FIVE YEARS digging deep into the mechanics of their website, learning what tricks or systems were put in place, and I am generally knowledgeable about privacy and anonymity to the point that would make even someone wearing a tin hat cower in a corner.
What makes me good at this is because I understand not only what CEG-TEK did with their website, but I also understand how their system can be misused, and I have every expectation that the RIGHTSENFORCEMENT.COM website will be an improved version of the CEG-TEK website, complete with advanced tracking, and malicious scripts and content to provide the attorneys evidence against you which they will use to gain an advantage over you.
Plus, this is all fun for me (I am not a hacker), but I enjoy uncovering what pitfalls the bad guys have set up on their sites, and how to get around those pitfalls in a way that keeps my clients anonymous, that protects their wallet, their credit cards, and their peace of mind, and that keeps them legally out of trouble.
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CONTACT FORM: If you have a question or comment about what I have written, and you want to keep it *for my eyes only*, please feel free to use the form below. The information you post will be e-mailed to me, and I will be happy to respond.
NOTE: No attorney client relationship is established by sending this form, and while the attorney-client privilege (which keeps everything that you share confidential and private) attaches immediately when you contact me, I do not become your attorney until we sign a contract together. That being said, please do not state anything “incriminating” about your case when using this form, or more practically, in any e-mail.