FTA and your Legal Rights....

[Fallen Angel]

Remember folks, I didn't write it, I'm just reporting it...you have to make up your own mind..
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This is a very informative post about your legal rights and FTA from another site. C&P


Hi everyone. Let me just start by saying that i am a smaller dealer that just got into this FTA business. I used to buy, but now i sell. After viewing these forums, i found that there was an important post missing, regarding the real legal situation and FTA.

So, what did i do? I just paid $800 to meet for a few hours with a lawyer that is very knowledgeable in telecommunications. Here is what i can pass on, for free.

IS FTA LEGAL IN NORTH AMERICA

Absolutely. By definition, it is FREE to air. Free channels, and a reciever to watch them with. There is nothing wrong with Free to Air. The goverment knows that, the big companies (b3ll, echoshit, cable companies) know it, and so should you. Free to Air has been around long before all of this craze revolving around the industry. Nothing has changed

IS IT LEGAL TO BUY FTA RECEIVERS FROM ANY WEB SITE

Absolutely. It doesn't really matter which site is selling the reciever, if it is FTA, then you can purchase it. Even if the site advertises illegal decryption, you can still buy it, as long as when you recieve it, you are watching FTA. That is why there are factory manufacturer software files. You are not responsible for the marketing of the web site. Only they are.

If you buy steak knives from a site that condones murder, because you like the brand of knives, you can rest assured that no one is coming knocking at your door for any crime. This is the same. Maybe your unit was "pre-flashed" when sent, but then who's to say you didn't flash it back right away, and watch FTA channels? maybe the price was right, or the model was hard to find. Either way, you are legally free to purchase anywhere.

IF MY DEALER GETS INTO LEGAL TROUBLE, AM I AT RISK TOO?

No. Unlike DTV hack equipment, you are safe from being "sued" or pursued for purchasing FTA. With DTV, there really was no other reason for getting a LOADER other than to program cards. Sure, you could argue you like to test atmel chips, but basically, if your dealer was busted, you were in big trouble.

FTA is different. A dealer can get in trouble for marketing a certain way, or for modifying units. But you, as an end-user, are never at risk, simply because FTA receivers are fully legal. It would take a stakeout at your house, watching you download encrypted channels to come after you for signal theft. If you see an ice-cream truck with antennas outside your home, watch out. Other than that, don't even think about it.

SHOULD I BE CONCERNED ABOUT ANYTHING?

Not at all. If you ever get a phone call from Echoshit, B#ll, or a lawyer's office, never, even for a second, worry about it. They are not coming after you. They would simply want information on your dealer. Don't incriminate yourself by even listening to the call. Politely say "I only watch FTA programming..bye..i'm in the middle of dinner". Because you are not at risk, never put yourself in this situation. They can never prove otherwise. Remember, you are only watching FTA programming. Period.

THE FUTURE

Basically...Just enjoy TV. Don't worry. Don't be paranoid. No one is ever coming after you. No one is suing you. No one is watching you. No one can prevent you from watching FTA television. Don't even worry about your dealer, and records of purchase. As far as the law is concerned, you purchased FTA. Let your dealer sort out any messes. It doesn't concern you. You should just watch TV.

Yes...this post cost me a pretty penney. But I wanted to be sure, and I wanted to fully understand my legal position. Hopefully, dealers will copy this email and send it to their customers so everyone can be properly informed. At least post it on your websites. It will make visitors/customers of your site much more comfortable purchasing products. End C&P

I have known all along that these box's would be very hard to prosecute for B3ll or Dishnet, after all they are Free To Air units made by various manufacturers. You aren't modifying dishnet cards or receivers

[sheeda2007]

Nice news.
Thanks for sharing.

[TGman]

Thanks for the information, your time and money spent is appreciated by us all. Many answers to alot of important questions. TGman

[nalla1]

Very well put! It's about time someone told it like it is.

[suziq]

:DThanks,appreciated!

[kobalt]

nice 2 know Thanks:thumbup:

[panoo]

This is really nice to know, thank you very much for posting it Fallen Angel!!! :thumbup1:

[neo50z]

what about IKS recievers, and do they get fta channels or just d1ck & b3v ?

[Fallen Angel]

what about IKS recievers, and do they get fta channels or just d1ck & b3v ?

Good question..an IKS is an FTA receiver...If you can get FTA channels without hooking it up to the internet (which you can) then it is legal...What you do with your internet is the same thing we do with our bin files.
So you are able to get FTA channels without the use of internet, correct?...and we can get FTA without the use of a bin file...so it is perfectly legal. However, if the server(s) are compromised, then you may get a letter from Dik...The same applies if someone who has an FTA receiver uses a third party Bin file, and sends it back to the manufacturer for replacement , or to be fixed, they (the manufacturers) are required , by a judges order, to turn over all receivers that have been altered to Echostar along with the persons name and address for prosecution...That also applies to IKS receivers...as long as the receiver has been altered with a 3rd party file, then it MUST be turned over by law. However, IN MY Opinion, If the IKS server(s) were compromised, then you would have another worry..your IP address....no matter how hard you try to hide it, the server HAS to log it...How else would you get your file?..And they can tell you the server doesn't keep logs, but I can't see how that would be possible...Remember, this is just my opinion...

[EVJ]

Thanks for the info.

[safwat2351040]

Well i just hooked my FTA a week ago instead of paying stupid Direct Tv or comcast <-------- RIP OFF"S

[jkatt]

thanks for the time & money you spent.

[Hydr0p0niCz]

really good post.. however i do believe in my opinion it would take a little more than an ip address to go after iks users.. just like it would take a little more than taking over forums, to go after non iks users.. but again thats my opinion... fta is safe and thats all that matters really for any worriers :D

[fluffydog52]

Thanks for sharing your information..Much appreciated

[minette]

Thanks for all the hard work,and dedication.

[Doodle17]

Good stuff!

[numbers]

Happy holidays to all of you at Keyzs . Hope you and your familys have a safe and happy holidays

[izet99]

Thanks for sharing.... :)

[lv2jm]

Merry Christmas everyone......
Haven't been to the forum in a while.....so I get a note at the top of the screen...that I don't chat enough:D

Very Funny.....I usualy talk too much:talk:

[bones123]

thanks for the info :D

[ttg]

thanks for your help

[fta+can]

Thank you so much for this valuable information.

[price]

I appreciate the latest legal information about FTA Boxes. Very helpful. Thank you for this valuable hint.

[menxfive]

Thank you very much for your post. I found it very informative. Question, Aren't the providers trespassing on my private property also? My eminent domain.:thumbup:

[Thomas B. Canotal, Jr.]

Graciously appreciated!!! Your messages are always a humbling experience.

[virgey]

What I find appalling is the fact that a company such as Dish or Bev are transmitting their signal into our homes without anyone's permission. When someone is testing a signal in the privacy of their home, I see nothing wrong since the signal simply passed through a device that was capable of interpreting the stray signal.

[ahamrick]

Earlier it was stated that iks keeps track of ip addresses that access the iks server. This is true. But is that also true for this site. Don't you face as much risk downloading from this site.

[kotaka]

kool nice 2 know thanks ur kool guy U KNOW IT.:drunk::beer:

[chistes]

This is really nice to know, thank you very much for posting it Fallen Angel!!! :thumbup1:

Excelente foro sobre todo lo relacionado con FTA!! felicidades!!

[franki44]

Thanks a lot for the information,so I will keep seeing my fta channels.

[amoore444]

thanks for Your time & info.

[dirtbag]

I'm sure that will put alot of
minds at ease, good post..

[keg24]

i was told that all iks was encrpted on both ends am i wrong?

[captain1]

Thank you so much for the info,was wondering about that, i was told once that they went to arrest someone with fta,the fta owner told them its my house ,my land, my dish,i don't want your signal in my garden ha ha he said its like the fruit tree that your neighbor has and the branches with fruit on hangs over into his garden by law he can take that fruit or even cut the branches off, i guess its just the same thing. Thanks again good job

[neo_waxworks]

Thank you so much for the info,was wondering about that, i was told once that they went to arrest someone with fta,the fta owner told them its my house ,my land, my dish,i don't want your signal in my garden ha ha he said its like the fruit tree that your neighbor has and the branches with fruit on hangs over into his garden by law he can take that fruit or even cut the branches off, i guess its just the same thing. Thanks again good job

you guys do realize some tried the argument that they are beaming the signal into your backyard, blah, blah before and courts ruled against them. Basically finding that simply because the signal is universally available, you do not have the right to circumvent it's protections...

[danny11]

lmao this is just only for free free channels that are up there not for incripted channels . incripted channels are not free to air . read the lines for free to air only.someone trying to boost sales lmao. just care about your money . so why is nfusion banned in canada . why are there busts . fta is for amc telestar 12 Intelsat and so on . when you modify your fta for bev or dick to steal its not a free to air no more.and as he mentions if you hook up to the net then that's another issue . how peeps read bull and believe . 800.oo for a lawyer for this what a bunch of xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx. . nice way to boost sales and feed the fish lmao.

[danny11]

you guys do realize some tried the argument that they are beaming the signal into your backyard, blah, blah before and courts ruled against them. Basically finding that simply because the signal is universally available, you do not have the right to circumvent it's protections...

you do not have the right to circumvent it's protections. there is a law for this . theft of telecommunications act.Signal Theft, Whether Satellite Theft or Cable Theft
is a Very Serious Offense

One definition of Theft of Service is the existence on the property and in the actual possession of the accused of any connection wire, or conductor, which is connected in a manner as to permit the use of cable television or satellite television service without the being reported for payment to, and specifically authorized by, the operator of the television service shall be sufficient to conclude that the accused has committed the crime of theft of cable television or satellite television service.

You're in a lot of trouble if you get caught with an Unauthorized Account (i.e. stealing satellite or cable signal) !
See how many laws you do break when you steal signal

United States - If caught with an Unauthorized Acccount you shall be charged criminally with either an ''A'' Class Misdemeanor, if the value is under $150 (roughly 3 months of Unauthorized service), or a ''C'' Class Felony if over $150 . Manslaughter in the Second Degree with a motor vehicle is also a Class ''C'' Felony.

Canada - Iit is an indictable offense. You shall be charged under either or both of the Canadian Criminal Code and the Radio Communications Act. You may even be charged with Wire Tap and/or Criminal Conspiracy !

In both countries you could serve time in jail! You are just as guilty, under the law, if you are aware of someone stealing cable or stealing satellite signal and do not report it.

Under current cable law and satellite law if the violations are willful, such as providing ''free'' cable to a tennant or to create financial gain or commercial advantage, such as charging for the cable as part of the rent, the guilty party can receive fines of up to $500,000 and up to five years in prison for a first offense and don''t forget the criminal record.

And the new Digital Millenium Copyright Act is even tougher on signal thieves

Pursuant to both American and Canadian Federal Law - the reception of satellite TV or cable TV services without the authorization of the satellite or local cable operator operators is unlawful.

These Federal laws, in both countries, provide that any person who willfully intercepts or receives or assists in intercepting or receiving any communication service offered over a satellite or cable system, unless specifically authorized by a satellite or cable operator or as may otherwise be specifically authorized by law is guilty of an offense and shall be fined or imprisoned or both.

A cable operator who finds such a violation has the option, under existing cable law, to assess you up to $5,000US per illegal device or connection. They may bring an action in a civil court to obtain injunctions to restrain violators (permanent denial of sewrvice) and the award of damages, costs, and attorney fees.

[danny11]

Industry Canada is very concerned about the continuing sale and use of illegal satellite decoding equipment. The Department is taking action to raise awareness of this issue and encourage electronic equipment retailers and consumers to refrain from participating in this unlawful type of business activity.

The Supreme Court of Canada has confirmed that decoding without authorization is illegal. Significant losses are being suffered by the Canadian broadcast industry due to illegal decoding. In addition, certain illegal decoding cards are causing radio interference to public safety services.

The Government of Canada through the efforts of the RCMP, Canada Customs and Revenue Agency, and Industry Canada is pursuing enforcement action against commercial ventures engaged in the selling of illegal decoding equipment.

[danny11]

I'm sure we can all agree that if someone took something that didn't belong to them, you'd call it theft. It's a pretty easy conclusion to come to when the thing being taken is a tangible item, something you can hold in your hands. And if that same item was taken from you through deceit, you'd call it fraud, another well-known crime. So why is it that so few people feel like they are doing anything wrong when they acquire the use of something that you can neither hold nor see, at least until it shows up on your wide-screen?

Personal integrity seems to slip away when it comes to illegally acquiring satelliet signals to watch your favourite movie. For whatever reason, people don't seem to mind stepping over the line just a touch to save $50 or $100 a month on a satellite television subscription.

It's not like we've had a crime wave of sorts in satellite thefts, it's as bad as it's ever been, but a reader of this column asked about illegal satellite dishes, so why not shed a little light on a crime that, well, mostly flies under the radar!

Does it really matter to anyone? I'm sure one of the arguments is the telecommunication companies in this line of business make wads of money, so you might as well get one up on the big guy. I can tell you that it matters to police services when it comes to recruiting
new officers. It's one of a multitude of lifestyle behaviours we probe when assessing the quality of perspective applicants. Shucks, if they're willing to scoff a little TV, what else have they been suspectible to in the dark of night?

Beleive it or not, Section 326 of the Criminal Code actually identifies the act of theft of a telecommunication service, a rare prosecution indeed, but one nonetheless. Section 327 prohibits possession of devices intended to steal those signals. The penalties include up to two years in jail. Once upon a time in the '80s, cable TV signal descramblers were the device of choice and diverted to illegal use, and investigation I became well acquainted with. Additional legislation can be found in the Radiocommunications Act which allows Canadians to subscribe only with Canadian companies and prohibits foreign companies to sell to Canadians.

Another excsue is the signals are falling from the sky and onto your property. In the case of U.S. satellites the signals leach over the Canada/U.S. border into Canadian air space and with that "intrusion" in mind, the signals are free for the taking. Others have argued that the regulation remains in place only to protect big companies;merely a political issue.

The truth is our marketplace is already governed by a myriad of laws from dairy farm legislation, to oil and gas rights and right on up to NAFTA.

Whatever the case, it has already been taken before the Supreme Court of Canada which has affirmed the laws as valid.

As a way of protecting their economic and proprietary interests, broadcasters code their signals and the receivers on the ground must be able to decode them. The signal encryption is changed regularly to frustrate those who use illegal devices. They run to their "dealer" to get new codes programmed into their receivers. Just like drug trafficking, the target of any such investigation is the supplier, those individuals who make a living selling decoding devices, information and services.

You can run your own integrity check and let that help you decide what sort of TV you like to watch.

[danny11]

C/P

Ok People, I can see this IKS thing is taking the hobby by storm. I hereby issue my formal warning to those of you who wish to indulge in such activity.

IKS Is Dangerous!

Should you choose to use IKS as a form of television viewing, you need to be aware of your risk. For those of you asking "what is IKS?", IKS is (Internet Key Sharing). The receiver is hooked to the internet via dongle or serial port, the receiver then requests the decryption keys from a server somewhere sharing a subscribed card. The keys are sent to the FTA receiver and processed to show video. The main risk is that you are connected to the internet the entire time and we all know people can easily be traced back to their homes through the internet.

I should add that these "servers" claim to (mask) your IP address thus protecting you from being identified, but really.. I'd hate to find out the hard way that their (masking) wasnt as good as they thought it was.

Let's take for example - Nfusion - for about a year, Nfusion was the greatest thing since sliced bread and they were deemed the IKS success story as their receivers flew off store shelves. JJ Gee, the head of DN signal integrity department, went after them with a vengance! The next thing you know, the Nfusion servers are down and rumors begin to circulate about a possible raid and confiscation of server logs. Of course, the Nfusion people (also associated with Kbox "coolsat") deny the claims and continue to insist that the people are safe and that they were just performing routine maintenance on the servers. Shortly after, the Nfusion receivers were lacking support which led many to believe that the people responsible for support were possibly "on the run".

Now let's move on to Sonicview, the folks at the Sonicview camp have proven their resillience in the game many times and none is more impressive than their recent 5 month uptime accomplishment! Why they are choosing to go the IKS route is beyond me but one can only guess, it's in the intrest of keeping their business running, plain and simple. The Viewsat camp, on the other hand, is confident in a cardless solution very soon and for the sake of the hobby, I wish them the best of luck.

In closing I would like to add, I am not too savvy on the way IKS really works or how masking features are implemented or how well they work. These are things that are likely kept under wraps so as not to expose their possible vulnerabilities. Whatever the case, I have spoken my peace and I hope you all stay safe. Thanks for being here!

C/P Wil
__________________




well ill sum it up real simple we all know what tv we watch dont we? all these years many of us are viewers from unloopers to blocker to bootladers to open e 3 holes.

all these years everyone wondered about gettin popped caught the dave letters era being sued going to court etc

with that said no way in hell am i ever gonna have a computer wire from my home computer to a tv! period! im not gonna ever take the risk of having a direct connection from a sat dish to my home.

see you can have dish at your house you can aim it at anything who knows? they might see your aimed at 110 119 91 82 etc but now have a wire from your own home adress hooked up to a computer and the sat dish but hey its your home and risk

[danny11]

POSSESSION OF DEVICE TO OBTAIN TELECOMMUNICATION FACILITY OR SERVICE
... / Forfeiture / Limitation.

327. (1) Every one who, without lawful excuse, the proof of which lies on him, manafactures, possesses, sells or offers for sale, or distributes any instrument or device or any component thereof, the design of which renders it primarily useful for obtaining the use of any telecommunication facility or service, under circumstances that give rise to a reaosnable inference that the device has been used or is or was intended to be used to obtain the use of any telecommunication facility or service without payment of a lawful charge therefor, is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years.

(2) Where a person is convicted of an offence under subsection (1) or paragraph 326(1)(b), any instrument or device in relation to which the offence was committed or the possession of which constituted an offence, upon such conviction, in addition to any punishment that is imposed, may be ordered forfeited to Her Majesty, whereupon it may be disposed of as the Attorney General directs.

(3) No order for forfeiture shall be made under subsection (2) in respect of telephone, telegraph or other communication facilities or equipment owned by a person engaged in providing telephone, telegraph or other communication service to the public or forming part of the telephone, telegraph or other communication service or system of such a person by means of which an offence under subsection (1) has been comitted if such person was not a party to the offence. [1974-75-76, c.93, s.24.]

[dirtbag]

Is this Canadian law or American?

[viejito]

Remember folks, I didn't write it, I'm just reporting it...you have to make up your own mind..
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This is a very informative post about your legal rights and FTA from another site. C&P

Thanks,very informative.FTA and your Legal Rights....

[Yakflyer]

Very informative reading. I have wondered about some of the topics you explained. Thanks!:thumbup:

[aa4ji]

What section law is this taken from and why does it say Her Majesty? Not argueing just a question so i can look it up further.:)

[dirtbag]

What section law is this taken from and why does it say Her Majesty? Not argueing just a question so i can look it up further.:)


Must be Canadian, No Queen in the U.S.

[dwhippet]

It is possible to set up an internet server and not keep the log files. The log is a history of activity of the server and this function can be turned off. But who does have a log file of this activity is your ISP. They generally keep the files for about 6 months or longer if requested to do so by the authorities. This is why I think IKS would be a dangerous system to use unless you are using it for true FTA.

I mention before that IKS would be considered a form of illegal file sharing. Fallen Angel disagreed with this statement stating that it is not illegal to download a bin file. This is true BUT I think IKS would be a real grey area. They only reason you would be downloading a bin file from an IKS server is because you have a modified system that requests it. As stated in the above post “With DTV, there really was no other reason for getting a LOADER other than to program cards, if your dealer was busted, you were in big trouble.”. These servers are out of the jurisdiction of the US and Canada but the people downloading the files are not. I would be scared to death to use an IKS system.

[dirtbag]

Still scared of IKS, none for me thanks....:smoke:

[HotDogTLW]

:beer:So, if you're scared of iks, don't use it, very simple.. As for me, I'll continue to enjoy
all the channels I receive, thank you...........Dog

[danny11]

:beer:So, if you're scared of iks, don't use it, very simple.. As for me, I'll continue to enjoy
all the channels I receive, thank you...........Dog

TV Vlaanderen : Anti-piracy operations


The Belgian Flemish TV Vlaanderen out the judicial artillery against cardsharing and seize piracy equipment . According to the Dutch biweekly Totaal TV, TV Vlaanderen has launched in recent weeks several actions against suppliers and individuals. The operation was conducted in Belgium and the Netherlands. One of the suppliers listed Belgian was also a major dealer TV Vlaanderen (referenced "topdealer" by the mix itself!). Several servers were seized, putting an end to a well-organized and qualified professional "clients" had a monitoring service, and could get answers in hours if a problem occurs. A civil action was launched in collaboration with other operators, as CanalSat, Canal Digitaal and BSkyB, as well as companies Kudelski encryption systems, Irdeto and Viaccess.
TV Vlaanderen

For the first time, the Flemish television provider to report a legal action against companies and individuals who facaliteerden card cardsharing .
In the Netherlands and Belgium in recent weeks been several raids.
TV Vlaanderen confirmed versus Total TV also raids were made by TV Vlaanderen-authorized dealers.
One of them was even a book as topdealer.
Biggest battle was beaten in an unspecified published in Belgium.
There was an organization that up in an organized scale involved in card herring.
It was the professional organization so arranged that there was a real asset servicing where, against payment, the customer even within one hour answer was given to urgent questions.
The linked web site after the invasion no longer accessible.
In several raids, many servers used for herring card confiscated.
The Economic Inspectorate against such persons Minutes noted.
This should later criminally accountable for the court.
There are all suspected civil proceedings started.
It is important to lost subscriptions yet collected it.
Not only TV Vlaanderen but almost all European service providers are civil proceedings started.
The defendants, in addition to TV Vlaanderen for example, claims from BSkyB, Premiere, CanalSat, Canal Digital and Digital + doormat to see fall.
To complete the deal also encryption technology providers and Kudelski, Irdeto and Viaccess to civil process
A very short summary:

* C+NL and TVV cards will not update correctly in some "unofficial" receivers. Your receiver will need an update, or on a dreambox you will need to use at least Cccam 2.1.x

* TVV has raided some cardsharers in BE. Most of these were shops/commercial servers, but they are also aiming at end-users.

[HotDogTLW]

:beer:This end user laughs, hahaha..........Dog

[Picaso]

provider are getting really agressive about iks ...

it wouldn't be surprissing if they go after end user ,like dtv have done ...

[chief lonno]

Thanks for the straight-forward info. This really answers a serious question! Chief

[HotDogTLW]

:beer:Do you remember what happened to the end users that ignored their letters or
shredded them????....might want to research that some..........Dog

[donnadean]

thanks for the infomation

[wordet]

I remember but I am not telling. Let them look it up.
Semper Fi

[Picaso]

yep i remember

[VSPRO 1223]

that was a good read it is really helpful . it is nice to no our rights so we dont get messest over thanks amill :D:D:D:D:D