The official site of the Prime Minister’s Office

Petition update, 05 August 2009

More details from petition creator

Copyright holders have the right to protect and enforce their rights against unlawful infringement. Indeed it is important for the economy for them to do so.

One such method of enforcement is obtaining court orders obliging ISPs to provide the personal data of their customers, en masse, in connection with alleged illegal peer to peer file sharing. Letters are then sent to alleged infringers demanding sums of around £500. It is thought at least 26,500 such letters have been sent so far.

The only evidence in these cases is an IP address - which in isolation can rarely identify the alleged infringer. To rely on an IP address alone as evidence is wholly disproportionate and causes a great deal of distress for those who are falsely accused. The requests for data should be interpreted as in connection with civil, not criminal offences and therefore should be being refused, as per EU directives 2000/31, 2001/29, 2004/48 and 2002/58 and Advocate General Kokott’s opinion issued on the 28/01/08.

Current signatories

Richard Maguire, the Petition Creator, joined by:

• Alex McMeechan
• s,smith
• Ian Critchley
• Peter Hall
• Stephen Griffin
• John Holden (petitions.pm.gov.uk/Thereisnogod)
• Christopher Hooper
• BK
• James Rogers
• Darren Wiles
• Steve Lawson
• Rob Gibson
• Colvin Cowie
• J Talbot
• David Hall
• Anthony Hagger
• Neil Dunbar
• Jason Roberts
• Terence Corrigan
• Paul Law
• Mr Partis (petitions.pm.gov.uk/reviewspeedlimit/)
• john webb
• Mr Howard
• peter hilton
• stuart waller
• toby rodgers
• Oliver Moore
• Steve Mott
• D G Ennion
• Jonathan Hatchett
• Rob Henderson
• J Clarke
• Alan Loy
• Jitse van Ameijde
• Daniel Harris
• John Senior
• Jack Heap
• Terry Brooker
• Ian Dedic
• Davide Baroncelli
• N Wright
• Julian Edge
• Bruce Goatly
• paul newman
• Michael Anderson
• David Sanders
• mairi mackechnie
• Helen Harris
• Ernest Harris
• Geoff Stamp
• Geoff Bennett
• Dorian Creber
• Jeffrey Shek
• David Wood
• Karen Lawrinson
• A Marshall
• Roland Carter
• S Cox
• Keith Hunter
• Edmund Haworth
• Paul Taylor
• mark dobson
• Neil Barnes
• Alistair senior
• Martin Stevens
• Roy Law
• J Graham
• Junaid Choudhary
• Zaffer Charles
• tony dooley
• C Porter
• Andrew McKinnon
• Nick Davis
• Stephen Miller
• C Senior
• S Clarke
• David Leadley
• robert dix
• Kevin McLeod
• Francis Davey
• Debra Powell
• Damian Minihan
• june griffiths
• M Frost
• Mark Green
• John Hendry
• david hopkins
• Karl Jones
• Jubed Rahman
• Peter Ridgley
• James Lowey
• Brett Patterson
• BR
• Spencer Newland
• fraser holland
• malcolm carter
• Immerjeet Kular
• Sam Morris
• barry steele
• Steve Barham
• Nicola Archibald
• Tony Oldfield
• phil marsh
• Adam Edge
• Ben Brown
• Rahan Uddin
• Abdul Khan
• Alex Wigmore
• Jabed Miah
• Juaqin Ramos
• Akon (Aliaune Thiam)
• Toby Bryans
• Gary Edwards
• Matt Kwisthout
• D Paul
• Conor Small
• Robert Paterson
• David Wain
• Samuel Gosset
• david keen
• Eric Brown
• d allison
• Kate Maguire
• Richard Acton
• Mark Saltmarsh
• Oliver Stephenson
• James Kerr
• Stefan John Overy
• Ben bishop
• Stuart Miller
• Don Utley
• D Nicholson
• derek peden
• N Houghton
• GARETH PAYNE
• Terry Sutherst
• antony hague
• Adrian Day
• J Harris
• Sean Smith
• Wayne Barnes
• Tim Kemp
• paul newman
• Linda King
• anthony wynne
• James Wilson
• Philip Dyson
• Stuart Blair
• Darren Wheeler
• steve tomes
• simon newlands
• Claire Mcnamara
• Jeanne Clist
• steven young
• Adam Sa
• Gregory Murnin
• S.Rhodes
• Alistair Stewart
• D Ody
• Alan Fletcher
• michelle marchal
• nicola winter
• Joel Cartwright
• Shaun Hollingworth
• mm
• andrew rosevear
• Tony Fairhurst
• W *****
• Paul Kirk
• David Russell
• Alan golding
• Lloyd Mitchell
• Robert Benson
• David Pooley
• Lucas Smith
• Paul Stangroom
• Andrew Wimble
• Colin Wilson
• Alex Geairns
• Michal Nedved
• Chris Ley
• Elaine Malcolm
• Tony Milne
• kenneth bryan
• Marin Cinzia
• Jonathan Bower
• Julia Lightfoot
• LK
• philip whiting
• Todd Gledhill
• Teodene Redrup
• David cooper
• E Bruno
• j busby
• alun melson
• Christopher Ivie
• Paul Carr
• Louis Chan
• John Mooney
• M. Kimmitt
• Jason smith
• S Tucker
• Linden Farrer
• Jennifer Cox
• Colin Lister
• Neil Melville
• Bradley Palmer
• Robert Evans
• C Dugan
• Nathan Drugan
• James Govan
• Christopher Porrino
• Andrew Smith
• Fred Munro
• James Riding
• James Milner
• John Geddes
• Matthew Johns
• Richard Andrew Milne
• Chris Kay-Ayling
• Ryan thompson (please sign /Distransport/)
• Paul Gribbon
• TiM Bodfish
• Jason Knight
• Bill Newby
• Lajor Cole-Etti
• Donald Stone
• john brice
• Linsley Holmes
• Corin Holmes
• Lorne Peakman
• justin
• Ryan Birch
• Simon Natella
• James Smith
• Kim Hird
• Steve Bramley
• John De Fries
• Oliver H
• Heather June Williams
• michael
• vikki clein
• ken wallace
• Kai Smith
• Zahid Mohammed
• Craig Graham
• John Richards
• Graeme Taylor
• Rod Harvey
• David Shepherd
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• Ricky Weston
• Jerome Higgins-Commowick
• Ian Mold
• P Godfrey
• Nicholas Davies
• Garry Phillips
• Robert Daniels
• andrew brown
• Ben Anderson
• peter field
• Nick Blundell
• Stephen Osborn
• Peter Gibbons
• maria
• Alan Rossington