Wednesday, April 14, 1999

Four Bates College Students Are Arrested on Software-Piracy Charges By JEFFREY R. YOUNG Police officers in Lewiston, Me., arrested four Bates College students this week for allegedly pirating computer software using the campus network. Investigators have confiscated the students' personal computers, and Bates officials have restricted the students' access to the campus computer network while the case is pending. According to a statement from the Lewiston Police Department, the students were using personal World-Wide Web accounts provided by the college to distribute copies of popular computer programs in violation of copyright laws. The programs included Microsoft's Windows 98 Upgrade and Office 2000. The statement did not say whether the students had received money in exchange for the software. The students were arrested and charged with aggravated criminal invasion of computer privacy, a crime that carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, a $5,000 fine, or both. The students were released from the Androscoggin County Jail Tuesday on $500 bail each, according to the Associated Press. Investigators have confiscated the students' personal computers, and Bates officials have restricted the students' access to the campus computer network while the case is pending, according to Phyllis Graber Jensen, a spokeswoman for the college. Ms. Graber Jensen said she did not know whether campus officials were involved in alerting local officials to the students' activity. She said the alleged piracy would most likely violate the college's Computer Use Policy, which says that "copyright violations may be grounds for sanctions against members of the academic community." Police identified the four students as Jayan Hong, David Sek, Ali Malik, and David Levin. One student declined to comment on the case, and the others could not be reached on Tuesday.