I there a way that websites can track my downloads of their content?

I am a little nervous about copying content clearly not intended to be copied. I was wondering if there was any way that my identity could be detected resulting in being banned from my favorite site(s)? How can I avoid this?

[Stream Ripper]

Hi Mike,

Great questions and valid concerns. It really depends on the software, but MOST streaming sites are not able to tell what you're doing, they just think you're a happy customer viewing their stream.

Also, this might help:

Applian Technologies, the developer of Replay A/V, Replay Media Catcher , Replay Music and At-Large Recorder, has the following answers to legal questions:


As a content publisher, we take copyright laws very seriously. We also believe strongly in Fair Use. The laws are simple: When recording or converting media, please do not redistribute it to other people. This will keep you out of trouble.

Our products fall in the same category as VCR's, TiVo Digital Video Recorders (DVR's), Tape Recorders, CD Burners, iPods, and other popular consumer devices. All Applian products record streaming media not protected by DRM (Digital Rights Management), and are fully compliant with all copyright laws, including the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). Only 1% of all online video and audio is DRM protected.

Here is what our products are NOT:

* We do not provide instructions or equipment to illegally access or tamper with software, servers, or web sites.
* We do not provide products that enable illegal access of cell phones and other communications or content delivery systems/devices.
* We do not provide software to unlock copyright protection.
* We do not provide tools for copying CDs or DVD's not intended for personal use.
* We do not sell products or services that circumvent digital rights management (DRM) technologies or technical protection measures for copyrighted works.


Will the RIAA or MPAA sue me for using your products?

The RIAA will not come after you as long as you record for your own personal use. File sharing services like eDonkey, Kazaa, Morpheus and the original Napster service put their users at risk, since redistributing copyrighted content or acquiring copyrighted content that you wouldn't otherwise have access to is illegal.

If you decide to share recordings with others, post them on the Internet, or sell them, do so at your own risk. This is definitely breaking the law.

What does the copyright law say about recording?

If you're really into the legal aspect of this, there are two important parts of the copyright law relating to recordings. We've quoted the actual text of the law below, and highlighted the important parts in green.

First, the basic right of copying is outlined in section 1008:

§ 1008. Prohibition on certain infringement actions
No action may be brought under this title alleging infringement of copyright based on the manufacture, importation, or distribution of a digital audio recording device, a digital audio recording medium, an analog recording device, or an analog recording medium, or based on the noncommercial use by a consumer of such a device or medium for making digital musical recordings or analog musical recordings.

Next, comes the provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). This is often used to stop distribution of certain copying programs. Replay Music operates by recording what comes out of the PC speakers, using capabilities built into Windows. We don't circumvent any copy protection systems, nor do we claim that Replay Music is designed to circumvent copy protection systems (which it isn't). The underlying technology behind Replay Music has been in use since at least 1999.

Below is the important part of the DMCA as it relates to copying and circumventing copy protection systems:

§ 1201. Circumvention of copyright protection systems

(2) No person shall manufacture, import, offer to the public, provide, or otherwise traffic in any technology, product, service, device, component, or part thereof, that —

(A) is primarily designed or produced for the purpose of circumventing a technological measure that effectively controls access to a work protected under this title;

(B) has only limited commercially significant purpose or use other than to circumvent a technological measure that effectively controls access to a work protected under this title; or

(C) is marketed by that person or another acting in concert with that person with that person's knowledge for use in circumventing a technological measure that effectively controls access to a work protected under this title.

(3) As used in this subsection —

(A) to “circumvent a technological measure” means to descramble a scrambled work, to decrypt an encrypted work, or otherwise to avoid, bypass, remove, deactivate, or impair a technological measure, without the authority of the copyright owner; and

(B) a technological measure “effectively controls access to a work” if the measure, in the ordinary course of its operation, requires the application of information, or a process or a treatment, with the authority of the copyright owner, to gain access to the work.

Risks to Recording...? Can I be detected and sued for capturing streaming lectures?