Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), the U.S. Copyright Act, and the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) Compliance

Policy Statement: All users of Guilford College's information and technology resources must abide by the requirements set forth in the Appropriate Use of Information and Technology Resources policy. Unauthorized or illegal use of copyright protected resources is prohibited.

Purpose/Reason for Policy: Guilford College must comply with the provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). It is illegal, as described in the Federal law (Title 17 of the US Code, and more recently the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, 105 PL 304), to download, upload, or distribute by any means or manner, copyrighted material in any form without permission or a license to do so from the copyright holder.
Guilford College also must comply with the requirements of the H.R 4137, the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA). HEOA is a reauthorization of the Higher Education Act. It includes provisions that are designed to reduce the illegal uploading and downloading of copyrighted works through peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing.   
Scope/Covered Persons: This policy applies to all users of information and technology resources (i.e., faculty, students, staff, affiliates, guests and visitors), and to all systems owned by the College and to any systems connecting to the College’s network.  Use of College systems or information and technology resources signifies understanding and agreement with these terms.
The Policy: Guilford College neither condones nor supports the use of copyrighted material in ways that are not permissible under the law.  Intellectual property guidelines are articulated in the staff and faculty Employee Handbooks and in the Student Handbook.


DMCA Claims and U.S. Copyright Act Violations:
All infringement claims must be in writing (either electronically or in paper format) and must include the following:

  • A physical or electronic signature of the copyright holder or a person authorized to act on his or her behalf;
  • A description of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works at a single online site are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works at that site;
  • A description of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity, and information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to locate the material;
  • Information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to contact the complainant, such as an address, telephone number, and, if available, an electronic mail address;
  • A statement that the complainant has a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and
  • A statement that the information in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that the complainant is authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.

At the discretion of the College, matters of DMCA and U.S. Copyright Act non-compliance will be referred to the relevant law enforcement agency when deemed necessary and/or appropriate.
Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) Compliance
The College must observe the provisions of the HEOA, which include requirements that:

  • Institutions make an annual disclosure that informs students that the illegal use and/or distribution of copyrighted materials may subject them to criminal and civil penalties and describes the steps that institutions will take to detect and punish illegal distribution of copyrighted materials.
  • Institutions certify to the Secretary of Education that they have developed plans to “effectively combat” the unauthorized distribution of copyrighted material.
  • Institutions, “to the extent practicable,” offer alternatives to illegal file sharing.
  • Institutions identify procedures for periodically reviewing the effectiveness of the plans to combat the unauthorized distribution of copyrighted materials.


Annual Disclosure:

Consistent with Guilford values and academic principles, we view education as the most important element in combating illegal sharing of copyrighted materials and promoting appropriate use of information and technology resources.  We use a wide variety of methods to advise and  inform our community about the law and Guilford’s  response to copyright infringement claims:

  • In order to retain access to college computing resources, all members of the Guilford community must comply with the Appropriate Use of Information and Technology Resources policy that includes provisions on copyright compliance.
  • Upon initial login to their Guilford accounts, all entering students, and new faculty and staff will certify their commitment to compliance in the use of copyrighted resources.
  • Each year, students, faculty, and staff will be sent an email with links to the Appropriate Use of Information and Technology Resources policy, this related DMCA policy, and the Library and Learning Technologies Copyright and Fair Use Guidelines as annual notification of the College’s compliance requirements. This email will remind recipients of potential civil and criminal penalties for violations.

Other Compliance Provisions:

  • Library and Learning Technologies provides information and a broad array of resources providing legal options for obtaining music, videos, and other digital content. Members of the Guilford community are advised to avail themselves of these legitimate sources of digital content.
  • Signage will be posted in all public access computer spaces, multi-function printer stations, and elsewhere as appropriate to discourage copyright policy violations.
  • Copyright and Fair Use Guidelines support the College’s efforts to educate the Guilford community on the legal and fair use of intellectual and creative content.  Specific information on legal online sources for copyrighted material may be found here.

Roles and Responsibilities:
The College’s designated DMCA Agent and Copyright Compliance Officer work together to ensure appropriate educational efforts to promote user compliance and to take appropriate action in response to reported incidents of non-compliance.


Designated DMCA Agent:
The designated agent to receive notification of claimed infringement under Title II of the DMCA for Guilford College is:
Director of Information Technology & Services
Guilford College
5800 W. Friendly Ave
107 Bauman Building
Greensboro,  NC  27410
Phone: 336-316-2020
Email: ITS@guilford.edu
Guilford College DMCA listing with the US Copyright Office


Notifications of claimed infringement should be sent to the College's designated DMCA agent at:  dmca_agent@guilford.edu


Copyright Compliance Officer:
Access and Information Services Librarian
Hege Library and Learning Technologies
5800 West Friendly Avenue
Greensboro, NC  2741-
Office:  336-316-2368
Email: library@guilford.edu

Requests for consultation and advisement on copyright and fair use compliance should be sent to the attention of the Access and Information Services Librarian at library@guilford.edu.

Compliance:
If the individual identified for non-compliance does not honor the request for response of the designated DMCA agent or Copyright Compliance Officer (as appropriate) within 72 hours, the following actions will be taken:

  • Students – If the individual is a student, Information Technology and Services (ITS) will deactivate access to the Guilford College network and remove any unauthorized or illegal material stored on the network or college devices. ITS will notify the Office of  Student Affairs and the student that such actions have been taken.  In accordance with the Student Code of Conduct: Rights and Responsibilities, failure to comply with this or any aspect of the Information and Technology Resources Appropriate Use policy may result in disciplinary action.
  • Faculty – If the individual is a faculty member, ITS shall notify the faculty member via email of deactivation of access to the Guilford College network within 72 hours unless there is compliance with the original request. Copies of this notice will be sent by ITS to the Provost and Academic Dean. If the faculty member does not comply within the specified time frame, ITS will deactivate access to the network and remove any unauthorized or illegal material stored on the network or college devices. Repeated incidents of non-compliance may proceed from personnel file documentation to formal disciplinary action up to and including termination.
  • Staff – If the individual is a staff member, the procedure is identical to the procedure for faculty, with the exception that copies of the notice are sent to the individual’s supervisor and/or department head.

Other related Policies, Regulations, Statutes and Documents:


Procedures:

Reviewing Effectiveness:

By various means, Library and Learning Technologies and Information Technology & Services, in consultation with other campus offices,  regularly conduct environmental scanning of faculty, staff, and student constituencies to determine the extent to which legal alternatives to accessing intellectual and creative content are advantaged, the effectiveness of technical efforts employed to combat illegal file sharing, and how other aspects of awareness and educational efforts to combat the unauthorized distribution of copyrighted materials are working to inhibit illegal file sharing.

Protocols to “Effectively Combat” the Unauthorized Distribution of Copyrighted Material:

Guilford College utilizes next generation firewall technology to effectively block and identify unauthorized use of peer-to-peer file sharing programs. Firewall technology also enables the college to block sites associated with digital piracy as problem sites are identified.  

Revised 5/24/2022