30,000 torrent users sued by US Copyright Group who doesn't know their names

US Copyright Group, representing an alliance of independent film producers, with backing from the Independent Film & Television Alliance, issued lawsuits against thousands of alleged movie pirates.

Moreover, US Copyright Group is anticipated to file another round of lawsuits (as many as 30,000) during the coming weeks.

The really troubling thing here is almost all of these are so called “John Doe” cases with IPs as the only identifying information. US Copyright Group is attempting to force ISPs to hand over names. So far, only one ISP has cooperated, resulting in 71 names.

By using “pre-settlement” letters, the group has so far gotten five of those people to pony up some cash.

The US Copyright Group is using a new software technology that monitors large Torrent swarms and logs IP addresses.

This scheme, that has been common in Europe and has recently reached US, seems to be targeted at casting the widest possible net to increase the odds of scaring someone enough that they settle an automated lawsuit.