The Register® — Biting the hand that feeds IT

Feeds

Alleged games console modder faces DMCA charges

All mods gone

Agentless Backup is Not a Myth

Federal agents have arrested a Californian student over allegations he specialised in modifying games consoles to allow the machines to play pirated video games.

Matthew Lloyd Crippen, 27, of Anaheim, California, was arrested by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents on Monday, following his indictment over two alleged violations of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), each punishable on conviction by up to five years imprisonment. Crippen is accused of modifying Xbox, Playstation, Wii and other consoles for profit, NBC reports.

A tip-off from the Entertainment Software Association led to an investigation by ICE. This investigation resulted in a search of Crippen's home last May during which agents seized dozens of allegedly modified video games consoles.

The DMCA makes it a criminal offence to either develop or distribute technology designed to circumvent copyright controls. The Act has frequently been applied to commercial disputes, often controversially, but the Crippen case is a rare example of the application of the law in a criminal prosecution. ®

Cloud storage: Lower cost and increase uptime

Latest Comments

@ Robert E A Harvey

You might want to read this....

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-488626/Was-Dr-Crippen-REALLY-innocent-We-exam-startling-new-evidence.html

Enjoy :D

0
0

@Jon 52

Jon, I suspect that it would affect phone unlocking. However, since the phone companies make you pay for the phone (in one way or another), they have more than a damned cheek making sure that they hold a MONOPOLY (illegal in he UK) on where it can be used. If it was of their own manufacture, then they could reasonably say that you can't use it on any other network. Provided they told you before you bought it. But, the phones are NOT manufactured by the phone companies and they don't make sure that you understand that it can only work on their network BEFORE you commit to it. Therefore, I see no reason why you (or anyone else) can't modify it (return it to the specification as stated by the original manufacturer). It became YOURS not theirs, so if you want to make it swim underwater in your bath, you are free to do so.

The main point here is that REVERSE ENGINEERING is NOT ILLEGAL in the UK.

0
0

Crippen was innocent!

Does this mean this guy will only be exonnerated 100 years latel?

0
0

More from The Register

 breaking news
Number of cops abusing Police National Computer access on the rise
Only a telegram from the Queen can get you off it
 breaking news
NSA whistleblower to tech firms, Obama: 'Grow a pair!'
Ed Snowden: Email tracking grabs 'IPs, raw data, content, headers, attachments, everything'
NSA: We COULD track you by your phone ... if we WANTED to
Honestly, too much work, can't be bothered
Google flings another £1m at online child sex abuse vid CRACKDOWN
See, see, we're trying, ad giant tells Daily Mail UK.gov
 breaking news
NSA PRISM-gate: Relax, GCHQ spooks 'keep us safe', says Cameron
Whatever they are up to, it's all above board, we're told
PRISM snitch claims NSA hacked Chinese targets since 2009
Snowden suddenly looks safer in Hong Kong after revelations
SCO vs. IBM battle resumes over ownership of Unix
Zombie lawsuit back and wants to suck the brains out of Linux
 breaking news
US chief spook: Look, we only want to spy on 6.66 BEELLLION of you
Americans assured they are not in the NSA's sights