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Users can circumvent IP address blocks by using software (such as an encrypted virtual private network) to relay their Internet connection via a server that is with a different ISP or via a different Internet backbone operator that is not affected by the block, but most users are not this sophisticated.

A disadvantage of IP blocking is that IP addresses can be quickly changed. IP blocking can also impact non-infringing websites, as a single IP address can host multiple websites.(Benjamin Edelman, "Web Sites Sharing IP Addresses: Prevalence and Significance," Berkman Center for Internet and Society, Harvard Law School, last modified September 12, 2003). However, the focus of copyright enforcement and website blocking is on sites that facilitate large-scale copyright infringement--such as those that have many full-length movies, TV shows, and songs--so even if the IP address used by a piracy site hosts non-infringing pages or files, the legitimate content that is blocked is small, and not reason enough to avoid shutting down the website. If The Pirate Bay or KickAssTorrents facilitated access to a small amount of content that had a creative commons license, and was therefore able to be shared, this would not change the fact that it is a piracy site worth shutting down.

Domain Name System (DNS) Blocking DNS blocking targets the process that converts website domain names into a corresponding IP address, which is then used to communicate with other servers. The DNS system effectively serves as the phone book of the Internet and is used by virtually every piece of software or hardware on the Internet, from web browsers and email applications to game consoles and streaming video devices.

An ISP can block an entire domain by making configuration changes at its DNS server. When a user asks to access a particular website, such as www.maindomain.com, the DNS server of the customer‟s ISP recognizes the domain as a blocked site, does not allow it to be translated into an IP address, and responds to the user that the domain does not exist or redirects to an informational webpage. DNS blocking is quick to implement, as existing systems can be easily adapted, and would only require a modest incremental investment for ISPs. (Ofcom, "Site Blocking.). Critics claim that DNS blocking, like IP blocking, will cause "collateral damage" due to the risk of over-blocking, as a single domain can host many websites through website extensions. (Internet Society, "Internet Society Perspectives on Domain Name System (DNS) Filtering" (Internet Society, May 30, 2012), 202, http://www.internetsociety.org/internet-society-perspectives-domain-namesystem-dns-filtering-0; Steve Crocker et al., "Security and Other Technical Concerns Raised by the DNS Filtering Requirements in the PROTECT IP Bill" (technical white paper, May 2011), https://stupid.domain.name/files/2011/05/PROTECT-IP-Technical-Whitepaper-Final.pdf.) However, this risk can be addressed by implementing DNS blocking at the subdomain level (e.g. www.piracysite.maindomain.com instead of www.maindomain.com). Furthermore, like IP blocking, if the main domain hosts a site that has the primary purpose of facilitating illegal access to copyrighted material, then it is a legitimate target for online enforcement. A website operator that hosts copyright infringing material would only be able to circumvent the DNS block by using another domain name, but like IP blocking, this becomes cumbersome. Users are able to circumvent this process by using another domain name server (e.g., users could use a virtual private network to connect to an alternative DNS server not subject to the blocking orders). However, like IP blocking, it would be a mistake to assume that the average Internet user has the above-average technical skills necessary to do this. Many, if not most, consumers have low levels of computer literacy and certainly are not sophisticated enough to understand how to manipulate the DNS settings in the network configuration of their computers, mobile phones, and other Internet- connected devices. Furthermore, users who switch DNS servers can expose themselves to many security risks if they cannot trust the responses from these servers. For example, while the alternate servers may reliably return the correct IP address for a Russian file-sharing site, they might not return the correct address for Bank of America. (Paul Vixie, "DNS Changer," Circle ID, March 27, 2012, http://www.circleid.com/posts/20120327_dns_changer/; U.S.Attorney‟s Office, Federal Bureau of Investigations, "Manhattan U.S. Attorney Charges Seven Individuals for Engineering Sophisticated Internet Fraud Scheme That Infected Millions of Computers Worldwide and Manipulated Internet Advertising Business," new release, November 9, 2011, https://archives.fbi.gov/archives/newyork/press-releases/2011/manhattan-u.s.-attorney-charges- seven-individuals-for-engineering-sophisticated-inernet -fraud-scheme-that-infected-millions-of- computers-worldwide-and-manipulated-internet-advertising-business). How many users are willing to risk their identity and financial information just to download a few songs?

Finally, circumvention software (such as encrypted virtual private networks) probably will not be adopted by many, as studies show that few users use these types of tools in countries where the government restricts access to certain websites. For example, a study by the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University found that "no more than 3 percent of Internet users in countries that in engage in substantial filtering use circumvention tools. The actual number is likely considerably less."(Hal Roberts et al., "2010 Circumvention Tool Usage Report" (report, The Berkman Center for Internet & Society, Harvard Law School, Cambridge, MA, October 2011), https://cyber.law.harvard.edu/sites/cyber.law.harvard.edu/files/2010_Circumvention_Tool_Usage _Report.pdf. ).

o The blocking of these websites was effective, causing a 90 percent drop in visits to the blocked sites by users in the study sample (from 86,735 visits to blocked sites to 10,474), while causing no increase in usage of unblocked piracy websites.(The result was not 100 percent as some ISPs may have delayed enacting the blocks (into December), usage of virtual private networks to circumvent the blocks, and the order does not target some of the smaller ISPs.) o The blocking of these websites had a significant impact on piracy, leading to a 22 percent decrease in total piracy for all users affected by the blocks (relative to the counterfactual estimate for how much they would have pirated if not for the blocks). The study is able to analyze the broader piracy universe as the 53 sites that were blocked were only a portion of the total piracy sites tracked in the study. (The causal change in total piracy was computed differently. The study assumes that the drop was a result of the blocks. Noting that the regression showed no causal increase in usage of unblocked piracy sites, the study calculated for each segment the total piracy before the blocks and assumed in the post-block period that, if nothing else changed except for the blocks, it would have been the same number less 90 percent, based on the study results. From this, the study calculated the causal change in piracy in each segment.) o These blocks changed consumer behavior. The study estimated that the blocks caused a 10 percent increase in user visits to legal ad-supported streaming sites such as the United Kingdom‟s BBC and Channel 5. (The analysis of the results for access to ad-support and subscription video services was based on an analysis of coefficients from a regression analysis and showed that the estimate for the change in access to ad-supported video site was measured with 95 percent confidence, while the estimate for access to subscription services was measured with 75 percent confidence.). It also caused an estimated 6 percent increase in visits by users in the study to paid legal subscription-based streaming sites such as Netflix. This contrasts with the 12 percent increase in visits to subscription-