Even if you're not from outside the United States, it is still not InfoPop's responsibility to educate you, as a Webmaster, in the legalities of content hosting. This is all common sense. To put it in perspective, if you own a computer (let's say a Gateway machine, for this example) - it is not Gateway's fault if you use their product to host a child porn web server. You would place blame on the company who coded the software solutions you use. Do you place any blame on your web host? Someone hosted your domain, did THEY not educate you on what you Can/Cannot say or do on their webserver?

Of course, all of this can be overshadowed by generalities. Would you mind sharing a bit more specific information? What "big corporation" are you talking about? In contrast, just because some company is filing suit against you doesn't mean it's justified or protected by law. I could go to a lawyer and sue you for any number of crazy things, doesn't mean it's "right". However, I can still sue to my hearts content for as long as I have money.

In short, InfoPop is not a "Webmaster education program". They aren't responsible for make sure you abide by laws and statutes of your area than Gateway is. Because I don't have the specifics I can't say if I think you are "in the right" or "in the wrong". Regardless, it's your responsibility. Some would relate your situation to the current Napster issue. I would disagree in this aspect, for several reasons I won't overly bore you with.

At any rate, just my personal opinion.

Regards,
The Wraith

[This message has been edited by jandaman (edited 10-27-2000).]

Did you leave the original user agreement terms in place with your board? If so, that *SHOULD* completely cover you from legal action - it clearly states that the board administration (and Infopop for that matter) is not responsible for any user-posted content.

If you have not done so, consult with legal counsel. I hope you're not in a state covered by DCMA...

Lawyers are not inherently evil. Like any other profession, most of them are good people doing their best to make a living for themselves and their family and tying to do as much good as they can along the way. But having said that, it's the only profession that I know of where the more of them we have, the more of them we need!

While I don't know your particular circumstances, I can imagine certain situations where a good case could be made against a webmaster for both civil and criminal charges. For instance, if you put up a site that solicits company trade secrets and your members oblige you by posting what they learned about software code, manufacturing processes, or other privileged information they learned while working for a company, then you are an active participant even if you never post any trade secrets yourself. Even if you are not actively seeking trade secrets but one of your members posts privileged information about a company, the company notifies you of the fact and you fail to take any action, there may be a case against you.

Notice that I use words like "may", "might", "could", etc. As always, your best bet is to talk to a lawyer familiar with how the law applies to the internet. After all, if you have a toothache, you don't ask the people that manufacture the dental drill how to treat your problem. And even after you talk to a lawyer, remember that it's best to err on the side of caution. The law is subject to interpretation and while one judge may read the law one way, another might view it entirely differently.

I'm sure there are many people that will be curious about the details of your case, as am I, but I highly recommend that you don't discuss it here or anywhere with anyone other than your lawyer. You never know when something you say may come back to haunt you. If the case goes to trial, and if you win, and if there is no gag order, and if your lawyer say it's OK, then you might want to come back and let us know what happened. Until then, don't do anything that might jeopardize your legal situation.

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DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY

THIS SOFTWARE AND THE ACCOMPANYING FILES ARE SOLD "AS IS" AND WITHOUT WARRANTIES AS TO PERFORMANCE OR MERCHANTABILITY OR ANY OTHER WARRANTIES WHETHER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED.

Infopop Corporation is not liable for any conduct associated with bulletin board activity, nor for any messages posted using this program.

The user must assume the entire risk of using the program. ANY LIABILITY OF THE SELLER WILL BE LIMITED EXCLUSIVELY TO PRODUCT REPLACEMENT OR REFUND OF PURCHASE PRICE. Failure to install the program is not a valid reason for requesting a refund of the purchase price, nor is failure to ensure that the program meets the user's requirements.

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Sorry you are getting hassled - I notice that you do not post the URL to your board here nor is it in your profile. If I do not see a pointer to your board on your next post I will close this thread and direct all communication regarding this matter to our Law firm.

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UBB are jerks, not everyone some of the people are nice, not many, but some...Im sorry but if you PAY $200 for a board, then get sued cause people are saying bad things...its not right

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What does that have to do with Infopop or UBB? The suit would happen no matter what forum software the person was using. They just provide the software...if a company was suing someone, they would do it no matter what forum software was being used. The fact that it is ubb is arbitrary.

Is ws_ftp pro responsible to let buyers know about illegal FTP sites? No...

Is the makers of ANY OTHER BBS responsible for ANYTHING a USER posts?

The ADMIN is responsible.

Blaming Infopop just makes you look like a bad administrator.

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