Proving the infringement of digital intellectual property rights: Overview of the Anglo-saxon legal system

Abstract

The multifaceted process of identifying and proving the infringement of intellectual property rights is further complicated and aggravated in the so-called analogue environment. The development of Information Technologies has given rise to a new set of problems. The digital technology has facilitated the infringement of intellectual property rights and additionally aggravated the process of proving these infringements. Hence, it is the duty of digital forensics to identify relevant (valid) evidence and present it in the court of law, which is not an easy task. In that course, the problems are twofold: legal and technical. First of all, the legislation in many countries is not adjusted to resolving the issues constantly emerging in the digital environment and there are apparent differences in the manner of regulating these issues. On the other hand, there is no standardized and unified technology which would provide for a uniform qualification and comprehensive treatment of these issues. Moreover, the place of commission of these criminal offences as a rule does not coincide with the place of occurring legal consequences. Yet, in spite of all these difficulties, there are technological methods and tools which facilitate the detection of cybercrime and provide evidence for securing relevant punishment. In the time to come, the developments in this area are expected to be aimed at strengthening the protection of legitimate interests of holders of intellectual property rights.