On campus, students of Georgia Southern U. will now find it harder —and more dangerous — to access pirated Internet files via the GSU network.

Effective July 1, the Higher Education Opportunity Act requires web security — such as firewalls and web deterrents — and disciplinary action — such as fines — to be put in place on campuses across the nation in order to prevent peer-to-peer file sharing.

“We have had mechanisms in place for some time now and have been compliant with the outlines of the HEOA for some years, and we will remain compliant,” said Steve Burrell, vice president of information and technology services.

He said, “The Act required institutions to put in place certain deterrents to prevent access to illegal files online. Some institutions were not meeting requirements, and the Act simply forced them to take measures and put something in place.”

Although patent and copyright laws have been in place for centuries, the HEOA narrows its regulations to focus on college campuses by putting in place official guidelines that schools must obey.

While the Act does not pertain only to peer-to-peer file sharing, the amendments to the Act were made in order to decrease piracy on college campuses.

“[GSU’s] policy is introduced to students at SOAR,” said Burrell, “and further information can be found on our homepage.”

While the Act does give suggestions, ultimately, any and all actions to be taken are left up to the school.

Copyright infringement penalties can be considered civil or criminal charges, and the HEOA sets in place a minimum fine of $750 that is not allowed to exceed $30,000 per work infringed.

However, if willful infringement can be proven, when one knowingly, and illegally, downloads music, the court may issue up to five years in prison and $250,000 in fines.

“The fact that there would be stiff fines instituted in a special penalty tailored for those that are hard at work attending college perplexes me,” graduate Eric Stetson said.

However, Stetson said that the Copyright Act itself leaves room for educational purposes and that college is the best place for educational use.

“Bands like the Grateful Dead even owe a certain degree of their fame to pirated recordings of their concerts,” said Stetson adding that “piracy” hurts the record companies, not the artist.

Not all are in agreement, as some students see this as the end of a long-standing problem.

“Since it’s an easy and cost efficient problem to fix, I’m glad the school is devoting time and man power to this issue,” said Dustin Vaught, a senior sociology major.

HEOA intends to decrease availability of access to file-sharing networks in order to prevent students from accessing such files

The Act sets in place requirements of its member colleges to prevent and educate first, and then, if necessary, punish offenders.

Burrell said, “Southern has been compliant for years now, so there will be no unexpected changes for students, nothing extra will be added, but we will follow our policies and those established by the HEOA.”

For further information regarding the HEOA and GSU’s policies, visit www.services.georgiasouthern.edu/aux/resnet.