A guide to Reddit's r/piracy subreddit, and how the community discussion site is combating illegal sharing (2024)

Even if you've never used Reddit, you've no doubt heard of it; it's one of the largest sites in the US, and with more than 2 million "subreddits," it has a stunning depth and breadth of content.

With all that activity, it's not surprising that Reddit has become a hub for digital piracy, and the site has struggled with managing copyright violations for several years. A subreddit called r/piracy (all subreddits begin with an "r/") in particular has become the focus of some unwanted attention.

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Reddit's piracy subreddit, explained

While other subreddits have occasionally shared copyrighted material, the r/piracy forum is, by design, for individuals interested in the tools, techniques, and resources of online piracy.

With more than 640,000 members, it was created in 2008 with the mission of being "a community dedicated to the discussion of digital piracy," according to its own description. That you can find discussions of the vulnerabilities of piracy laws on Reddit is unsurprising.

"Google 'reddit piracy' and you'll find lots of active links, where Reddit users openly discuss the weakness and vulnerabilities of various piracy laws," said Monica Eaton-Cardone, chief operating officer of Chargebacks911.

Given the subject matter, the piracy subreddit attempts to thread a particularly precarious needle. According to the rules of the subreddit, "submissions must be related to the discussion of digital piracy." The rules of the forum specifically prohibit activities like linking directly to pirated media, requesting activation keys, asking others to download pirated content, or asking how to pirate specific copyrighted works (though generalized conversations about pirating techniques are acceptable).

A guide to Reddit's r/piracy subreddit, and how the community discussion site is combating illegal sharing (1)

A scan of r/piracy reveals an active community (at any given time, there are more than 1,000 users online) with threads about a diverse range of topics, including tips and tutorials on using popular tools and utilities, troubleshooting tips ("why are my 4K movies purple?"), and news about sources for copyrighted content.

Unlike many online forums elsewhere on the internet, though, r/piracy is a moderated community (Reddit moderators are unpaid volunteers from the community) and the discourse is largely civil and on-topic.

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The state of piracy on Reddit

Reddit has been attempting to address piracy on its platform for several years, with serious efforts to mitigate copyright infringement beginning around 2019. Eaton-Cardone said, "Reddit has banned some of the more blatant abusers — /r/NFLstreams, /r/NBAstreams, /r/soccerstreams, /r/UFCstreams, /r/WWEstreams — but Reddit is one of the largest sites in the world. Policing it is extraordinarily difficult."

Nir Kshetri, a professor at the Bryan School of Business and Economics, explained why Reddit was compelled to act: "When it was shut down, r/NBAstreams had 474,000 subscribers who could access pirated NBA content for free. The subreddit r/soccerstreams had more than 400,000 subscribers who had access to pirated soccer streams."

Rather than shutting down r/piracy outright, as happened with those other subreddits, Reddit decided in 2019 to delete all of r/piracy's posts and comments created prior to September 2018 — a decade's worth of content, erased from the Reddit archives.

In Reddit's transparency reporting, it's clear that the platform has been increasing its content monitoring exponentially. In 2018, Reddit received 9,534 copyright notices, which resulted in 26,234 content removals. In 2019, Reddit received 34,989 copyright notices, which resulted in 124,257 content removals — nearly five times that of the year before. In 2020, Reddit received 86,866 copyright notices and removed 375,774 pieces of content — three times as many as in 2019.

Based on the takedown requests — and actual takedowns — Reddit appears to have a piracy problem, and r/piracy moderators have existential concerns about the future of their subreddit. "We are now on thin ice," moderators wrote in one post, and added that the subreddit is in jeopardy. "We definitely do not want to be banned like r/megalinks, which was a subreddit specifically tailored to providing links to pirated content."

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Cleansing Reddit won't eliminate piracy

Even if members appear to follow guidelines and avoid posting links to copyrighted material, some users say that the subreddit is still a direct vector to piracy.

Will Peach, a fourth-year medical student who regularly uses the r/piracy subreddit, said, "It happens via the backdoor. Recommendations are made in various threads and then DMs [direct messages] are sent privately. Piracy happens via other portals, like Google Drive. But it almost always starts on Reddit."

A guide to Reddit's r/piracy subreddit, and how the community discussion site is combating illegal sharing (2)

Reddit moderators appear to be enforcing guidelines in hopes of staving off a full shutdown of the r/piracy subreddit, yet they're also planning for the worst.

Allan Borch, founder of the tech marketing blog Dotcom Dollar, said, "[They] already have a list of forum replacements, including rival discussion site Raddle.me." Referring to the purge of posts older than 2018, Borsh added, "Indeed, those posts 10 years in the making aren't actually gone. They've already been archived on GitHub. Piracy might move away from Reddit, but that doesn't mean it's dead."

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Dave Johnson is a technology journalist who writes about consumer tech and how the industry is transforming the speculative world of science fiction into modern-day real life. Dave grew up in New Jersey before entering the Air Force to operate satellites, teach space operations, and do space launch planning. He then spent eight years as a content lead on the Windows team at Microsoft. As a photographer, Dave has photographed wolves in their natural environment; he's also a scuba instructor and co-host of several podcasts. Dave is the author of more than two dozen books and has contributed to many sites and publications including CNET, Forbes, PC World, How To Geek, and Insider.

A guide to Reddit's r/piracy subreddit, and how the community discussion site is combating illegal sharing (2024)

FAQs

How is R piracy not banned? ›

Unlike many others, it operates within a jurisdiction that does not adhere to international copyright laws or DMCA regulations. As a result, it has gained popularity among piracy enthusiasts due to its limited content filtering capabilities.

Why is Reddit against piracy? ›

Piracy on Reddit poses significant threats to the creative industry as a whole. It damages the hard work, talent, and investment put into producing original content, leading to financial losses for content creators, studios, musicians, and developers.

Can you go to jail for anti-piracy? ›

Enforcement: Conviction is punishable by a fine not exceeding two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500), imprisonment in a county jail for a period not exceeding one year, or by both that fine and imprisonment.

Has anyone gone to jail for piracy? ›

NEW ORLEANS — A Louisiana man was sentenced to two years in federal prison Wednesday for manufacturing and distributing pirated movies and musical albums following an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Do people actually get sued for piracy? ›

Making unauthorized copies of copyrighted music recordings is against the law and may subject you to civil and criminal liability. A civil lawsuit could hold you responsible for thousands of dollars in damages.

Why does Nintendo hate piracy? ›

Most importantly, game developers and publishers depend on the legitimate sales of their games in order to survive. Piracy discourages innovation and new game development which ultimately impacts the consumer.

Is piracy banned in USA? ›

Penalties for Piracy

Federal law bars any copyright infringement that was perpetrated for commercial advantage or private financial gain. It also prohibits the reproduction or distribution (tangible or electronic) of one or more copyrighted works with a total retail value over $1,000 during a 180-day period.

Why piracy is not stealing? ›

A common explanation for why copyright infringement isn't theft is that the original copyright holder still possesses the work they made, unlike the theft of an object. Copyright holders frequently refer to copyright infringement as theft, although such misuse has been rejected by legislatures and courts.

How is piracy stopped? ›

Technological Solutions: Implementing advanced anti-piracy technologies, such as digital rights management (DRM) and watermarking, can help protect content. Additionally, leveraging data analytics to track and shut down pirated content sources is crucial.

Why is piracy right? ›

Piracy is Ethical

Some think that there is nothing wrong with software piracy. They believe in the freedom of information and expression (ie. "information wants to be free"). According to them, it is acceptable and ethical to copy the software because they have a right to the information contained in the software.

Why piracy is not allowed? ›

Copyright law protects the value of creative work. When you make unauthorized copies of someone's creative work, you are taking something of value from the owner without his or her permission.

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