Operation Buccaneer is an "ongoing international copyright piracy investigation and prosecution" undertaken by the United States federal government.[1] It was part of a crackdown divided into three parts: Operation Bandwidth, Operation Buccaneer and Digital Piratez.[2]
An undercover operation began in October 2000.[3] On December 11, 2001, law enforcement agents in six countries targeted 62 people suspected of violating software copyright, with leads in twenty other countries. U.S. law enforcement agents, led by the United States Customs Service, raided computers in the economics department of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology,[4] the University of California, Los Angeles, an "off-campus location" of the University of Oregon, and dorm rooms at Duke University and Purdue University.[5] Information obtained led to a subsequent raid at the Rochester Institute of Technology,[6] described by "warez gadfly 'ttol'" as one of "the two major hubs for communications between pirate groups" (along with the University of Twente in the Netherlands).[7] However, the universities themselves were not considered targets of the criminal investigation.[8] Several software companies were also raided.[6]
"The Customs Service said it had singled out DrinkOrDie because it was considered one of the most sophisticated of the rings operating within a loose, global network."[5] The DrinkOrDie site, where non-free software could be downloaded for free, was shut down the following day.[5] However, Farhad Manjoo wrote in a Wired magazine article that others were puzzled why the group was targeted; Manjoo characterized them as "small potatoes in the world of software theft", while an anonymous Australian infringer was quoted as saying, "they aren't the first to come to mind when you think to yourself 'who's the big deal in the scene?'"[9]
Around 70[3] search warrants were served and 150[5] computers were seized for analysis. Raids were also conducted in Canada, Britain, Australia, Finland, Norway and Sweden.[4] [10] Other groups investigated in the operation were warez groups such as Risciso, Razor 1911, RequestToSend (RTS), ShadowRealm (SRM), WeLoveWarez (WLW) and POPZ.
Related law enforcement actions include: Operation Fastlink, Operation Digital Gridlock, Operation D-Elite and Operation Site Down.
"This investigation underscores the severity and scope of a multibillion-dollar software swindle over the Internet, as well as the vulnerabilities of this technology to outside attack."
- Robert C. Bonner, commissioner of the Customs Service
"Our targets are not your stereotypical teenage hacker."
- Customs assistant commissioner John Varrone
"This is not a sport. This is a serious crime. These people should do some hard time."[11]
- Commerce undersecretary Phil Bond
"Software piracy undermines the stability of the burgeoning e-commerce industry and it is a direct threat to innovative companies that help strengthen the U.S. economy."
- Deputy U.S. Treasury Secretary Kenneth Dam
"This investigation only assist the multibillion-dollar companies to swindle you, the avid consumer, as well as the vulnerable people that deem information should be free, sure we would like people to buy the games they test play, but it doesn't happen because people have to pay #$ a gallon for gas and shit. Technology is to be used for the good of all, not some fat ass company man who doesn't know the first thing from a rar to a iso...... Gravy is awful good."
- buj, Member of razor 1911
As of October 2002, 17[12] people have been convicted of felonies in the United States, with 13 given federal prison terms of up to 46 months.[1] In addition, Australian resident Hew Raymond Griffiths, the self-admitted leader of DrinkorDie,[13] fought extradition to the United States for almost three years, but eventually lost and was sentenced to 51 months, though he was credited for the time served in an Australian jail.
In the United Kingdom, six were formally charged.[14] In May 2005, some DrinkorDie members were the first to be sentenced in the United Kingdom as a result of Operation Buccaneer.[15]
| Name | Scenename | Conviction date | Offense | Sentence | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Berry, Richard | Flood | April 29, 2002 | Conspiracy | ||
| Buchanan, Anthony | spaceace | August 19, 2002 | Criminal copyright infringement | ||
| Clardy, Andrew | Doodad | April 4, 2002 | Criminal copyright infringement Aiding and abetting | ||
| Cole, Myron | t3rminal | July 10, 2002 | Criminal copyright infringement | ||
| Eiser, Derek | Psychod | June 21, 2002 | Criminal copyright infringement | ||
| Erickson, Barry | Radsl | May 2, 2002 | Conspiracy | ||
| Grimes, David A. | Chevelle | March 4, 2002 | Conspiracy | ||
| Gross, Robert | targetpractice | May 22, 2002 | Criminal copyright infringement | ||
| Hunt, Nathan | Azide | April 3, 2002 | Conspiracy | ||
| Kartadinata, Kent | Tenkuken | January 31, 2002 | Conspiracy | ||
| Kelly, Michael | Erupt | April 10, 2002 | Conspiracy | ||
| Nawara, Stacey | Avec | March 19, 2002 | Conspiracy | ||
| Nguyen, Mike | Hackrat | January 31, 2002 | Conspiracy | ||
| Pattanayek, Sabuj | Buj | April 11, 2002 | Conspiracy | 41 months | |
| Riffe, John | blue | May 9, 2002 | Criminal copyright infringement | ||
| Sankus, John Jr. | eriFlleH | February 27, 2002 | Conspiracy | 46 months[16] | |
| Tresco, Christopher | BigRar | May 28, 2002 | Conspiracy | 33 months[17] |
Countries
| United States cities
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