Could a party who disliked a website's message, or felt it a threat to their 'business' interests shut down the site using PIPA or SOPA by falsely claiming infringement of copyright? Given a 'sharp' lawyer familiar with the administrative/appeals processes, could this clique keep the website shut down on the basis of copyright violations closed long enough so that its sponsers were bankrupted or the organisation supporting it is weakened or destroyed due to lack of a voice on the Net? If the copyright claim shutting such sites down was later proven to be frudulent or nonexistent, what would be the penalties against the party who used this information in the original SOPA or PIPA complaint? If it is a 'civil' penalty;this can be gotten easily around by having an incorporated shell company, in US law a legal person-file the complaint. If later sued and bankrupted, it vanishes into the paperwork universe it came from... In the USA, it is possible to get a copyright by mailing a letter with the material in it to yourself, and storing the postmarked letter away without opening it...If needed, this can be opened later in court and used as evidence of copyright, the postmark has year and date on it. Concerning criminal activities, it would not be that hard to 'forge' a postmark-since they are crude rubber stamps. What is to prevent 'censors' from using the "false alarm" of a bogus copyright claim of infringement against a website in order to shut it down using PIPA or SOPA to further their special interests-suppression of "heretical" material or perceived threats to a vested financial interest?
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PIPA SOPA_Use as Censor Tool By Special Interests
Could a party who disliked a website's message, or felt it a threat to their 'business' interests shut down the site using PIPA or SOPA by falsely claiming infringement of copyright? Given a 'sharp' lawyer familiar with the administrative/appeals processes, could this clique keep the website shut down on the basis of copyright violations closed long enough so that its sponsers were bankrupted or the organisation supporting it is weakened or destroyed due to lack of a voice on the Net? If the copyright claim shutting such sites down was later proven to be frudulent or nonexistent, what would be the penalties against the party who used this information in the original SOPA or PIPA complaint? If it is a 'civil' penalty;this can be gotten easily around by having an incorporated shell company, in US law a legal person-file the complaint. If later sued and bankrupted, it vanishes into the paperwork universe it came from... In the USA, it is possible to get a copyright by mailing a letter with the material in it to yourself, and storing the postmarked letter away without opening it...If needed, this can be opened later in court and used as evidence of copyright, the postmark has year and date on it. Concerning criminal activities, it would not be that hard to 'forge' a postmark-since they are crude rubber stamps. What is to prevent 'censors' from using the "false alarm" of a bogus copyright claim of infringement against a website in order to shut it down using PIPA or SOPA to further their special interests-suppression of "heretical" material or perceived threats to a vested financial interest?