Do hackers have a right to privacy?

Internet platforms do not have to report the true online identity of copyright infringers

There are many online platforms that allow authors to publish their music, films and other content. But the same channels are also used to illegally share copyrighted works between private users who upload and download music, films, books and other content without the participation of the relevant copyright holders.

Under the Directive on Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights, courts may order the infringer or other person to provide information about the origin and distribution channels of the infringing goods or services, including the names and addresses of infringers. The Court of Justice of the European Union in Decision No. C-264/19 recently confirmed a restrictive "offline" meaning of the term "address", which does not include the e-mail addresses, telephone number or IP address of the infringers. As a result, online sharing platforms are obliged to disclose only the name and postal address of habitual residence of the infringers using their services, which are usually fake and therefore useless for the copyright owners to enforce their rights.

authors: Stanislav Bednář and Libuše Dočekalová