New Jersey Institute of Technology Bans File-Sharing on Campus Network

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on May 2, 2003 - 8:19am.

San Francisco -- In the wake of a lawsuit filed by the recording industry against four college students accused of copyright infringement via file-sharing networks, the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) has banned the use of file-sharing software like Kazaa, Grokster and Gnutella on its campus network, Wired News reported on Friday. The school is using "traffic shaping" software to monitor its network for the telltale signs of file-sharing, in addition to prohibiting the use of the well-known file-sharing services. "Our institution was receiving calls from the Recording Industry Association of America on almost a daily basis, identifying addresses that belonged to our students," Jack Gentul, dean of students at NJIT, told Wired News. "It was growing in number to the point in which we couldn't handle it. When I can't get my own 13-year-old to stop (file-sharing), I don't know how I can get my entire campus to stop." The record industry lauded the school's decision. "The specific action a higher education institution chooses to take to prevent this type of illegal behavior varies and is up to the individual university, but we absolutely applaud those who take such theft seriously," an RIAA spokesperson told Wired. http://www.wired.com/news/digiwood/0,1412,58698,00.html
http://www.njit.edu