Why is file sharing illegal?
Not all file sharing is illegal. For instance, the sharing of non-copyrighted material or material with permission of the creator is legal. However, the majority of P2P file sharing involves sharing copyrighted or restricted material such as music, which is illegal. A copyright grants the creator/owner of the material exclusive rights to the material and its distribution. By distributing this material without permission, the person distributing the material is violating copyright law and is subject to penalties under the law. For more information see Wikipedia’s article on File Sharing and the Law and Wikipedia’s article on Copyright.
