The European Commission is to investigate anti-piracy software intended for use by Virgin Media, after a human rights group asked for the legality of such software to be assessed. The software called CView will be used by internet service provider (ISP) Virgin Media to detect illegal and legal files being downloaded on its network.
Designed by Detica, a monitoring firm, CView inspects data travelling on networks, discovering the file names by which it can asses the data’s legality. However, whilst Virgin Media said that the programme would not affect individuals’ privacy, Privacy Internationals head Alexander Hanff said that its use would break UK law. “Under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (Ripa) intercepting communications is a criminal offence regardless of what you do with the data,” he explained, adding that if the ISP went ahead with its use he would compile a criminal complaint against them.
As the government develops technology to identify online fraudsters, spokesman for Virgin Media Asam Ahmad explained that the software simply highlighted illegal traffic rather than point to specific individuals. Whilst Mr Ahmad confirmed that up to 40per cent of customers would be investigated without prior warning, ThinkBroadband’s editor Andrew Ferguson expressed that Virgin Media’s trial could recover useful statistics. “If Virgin can form a baseline for its ‘illegal’ P2P traffic, it can see how much effect any legislation has, and perhaps plan better for the letter forwarding side of things,” he explained, adding that they weren’t the first ISP to implement such schemes as BT had been doing it for years.
