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Safe & Responsible Computing |
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Links We Like for Tweens & Teens |
File Sharing -
What’s the Big Deal? You’ve probably seen some of your friends copy or download
files like music or games. Some of the
sites that people go to are legal – some are not. Make sure you know where you are getting
your music. Illegally copying music or games is just stealing. You wouldn’t think of going to the mall and
shoplifting – so why shoplift off the Internet? It’s easy to think that everyone is doing
it; but that’s not true. Everyone does
not steal – and neither do you! Some musicians – new and established – will sometimes put up
their music for free. And that’s okay. What’s not okay – is when sites make copies of music – maybe
they bought a cd at the mall – and put that music file on the Internet for
others to copy for free. Because it’s
a copy, the quality of the music is usually not so good. Illegally downloading music is called “piracy” and “copyright
infringement.” Basically, that means
the musician who worked so hard to create the song and the people who helped
him do not get paid. And that’s just
not right. What else should you be worried about? §
Well, just like other computer files music files can
contain viruses that can harm your computer.
But, music that is downloaded from a legitimate site is less likely to
be dangerous. §
You may think that downloading music is anonymous, but
it isn’t. Every mouse click, every
transactions on the Internet can be traced. §
The recording industry is taking a tough stand on
illegal downloads. Individuals who
illegally copy music – knowingly or not – can face criminal prosecution and
civil suit. |
