DMCA: The American law that has become the global weapon against digital abuse, content theft, and illegal distribution

Admin
Dec 14, 2025
4 min read

Originally designed to protect copyright holders in the face of the rise of the internet, the DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) is now much more than just an American law. It has become a global standard for removing illegal content, used daily by millions of victims, creators, businesses, and organizations.

In a borderless Internet, where hosting providers hide behind exotic jurisdictions and where some sites openly claim impunity as a marketing argument, the DMCA remains one of the few truly effective transnational legal tools.

1. What is the DMCA? Origin and context

The DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) is a U.S. federal law adopted on October 28, 1998 , incorporated into Title 17 of the United States Code , primarily in sections §512 and §1201 to §1205 .

It was designed to:

adapting copyright law to the digital age,
protect rights holders,
to define the responsibility of technical intermediaries.

The DMCA is the American transposition of the 1996 WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization) treaties , including:

the WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT),
the Treaty on Interpretations and Performances and Phonograms (WPPT).

👉 From the outset, the DMCA has been part of an international framework.

2. An American law… applied worldwide

It is common to hear: "The DMCA is an American law; it does not apply here."

That is legally incorrect in modern digital practice .

Why is the DMCA enforced worldwide?

Because :

A large part of the internet infrastructure is American.
The major global players (Google, Meta, X, Amazon, Cloudflare, GitHub, Microsoft, OVHcloud US entities, etc.) are subject to it.
WIPO international treaties impose equivalent mechanisms.

👉 A website hosted outside the United States but using:

an American registrar,
an American CDN,
an American search engine,
an American payment provider,

cannot ignore the DMCA without consequences.

3. The fundamental principles of the DMCA

The heart of the DMCA: the “Notice and Takedown”

The central mechanism is provided for at 17 USC §512 .

It is based on a simple principle:

A rights holder notifies a violation,
The hosting provider promptly removes the content.
The hosting provider benefits from a limitation of liability.

This is what is called a safe harbor .

4. The “safe harbor”: conditional protection for hosting providers

Key article: 17 USC §512(c)

A hosting provider is not liable provided that :

of not having actual knowledge of the illegality,
to act quickly after notification,
not to derive a direct financial benefit,
to appoint a DMCA agent.

👉 Inaction causes the protection to fail.

A hosting provider that willfully ignores DMCA complaints loses its immunity .

5. A worrying trend: willful ignorance as marketing

In recent years, some actors have openly claimed:

“no DMCA”,
“DMCA ignored”,
“free speech hosting”.

This stance is extremely risky from a legal standpoint .

For what ?

Because :

The safe harbor no longer applies.
Registrars can suspend the domain.
Transit providers can cut off access.
Search engines can massively delist content.

👉 Willful ignorance is not neutrality, it is a fault.

6. What the DMCA actually protects

Contrary to popular belief, the DMCA does not only protect:

the films,
music,
large companies.

It also protects:

personal photographs,
private videos,
the texts,
the screenshots,
the original publications,
content distributed without authorization.

👉 An intimate image disseminated without consent is also a protected work.

7. DMCA and revenge porn: an often underestimated tool

In cases of revenge porn:

The victim is often the person who took the photo or video.
or holds the exploitation rights.

The DMCA allows:

a quick withdrawal
without waiting for a court decision,
even when the site is abroad.

👉 This is often the fastest way to take action.

8. The legal requirements for a valid DMCA notification

The official procedure is defined at 17 USC §512(c)(3) .

A DMCA notification must contain:

Identification of the protected work
The URL specifies the content in question.
The complainant's contact details
A declaration of good faith
A declaration made under penalty of perjury
A signature (physical or electronic)

Mandatory declaration:

“I have a good faith belief that use of the material is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law.”

“The information in this notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, I am the owner or authorized to act on behalf of the owner.”

9. To whom should I send a DMCA complaint?

A DMCA complaint can be sent to:

the hosting provider,
the domain name registrar,
the CDN,
the search engine,
the social platform,
the storage provider.

👉 It is often strategic to notify several intermediaries simultaneously.

10. DMCA and search engines: a major lever

Google, Bing and others strictly enforce the DMCA.

A validated complaint results in:

the delisting of pages,
almost no visibility of the content
a lasting loss of traffic for the site.

👉 Removing indexing means removing the audience.

11. Counter-notification: a regulated right

The DMCA provides for a counter-notification (17 USC §512(g)).

But :

It engages the legal responsibility of the author.
She is liable to legal proceedings.
It is rarely used in good faith in cases of harassment.

👉 Harassers often make threats, but rarely follow through.

12. DMCA and false legal arguments

“This is public data”

❌ False. Copyright still exists.

“Freedom of expression”

❌ Does not cover rights violations.

“We are not in the United States”

❌ No effect when US infrastructure is used.

13. DMCA and its relationship with European law

The DMCA operates as a complement :

of the GDPR,
of the LCEN,
image rights,
of criminal law.

👉 This is a cumulative legal strategy, not an exclusive one.

14. Why the DMCA remains essential for online protection

Because she is:

fast,
international,
procedural,
recognized by major players
inexpensive,
Extremely effective.

For a victim, a DMCA is often :

the first blow to digital impunity.

The DMCA, an American law that has become a global standard

The DMCA is not perfect. But today it is one of the few truly operational cross-border tools .

In a fragmented Internet, where some hosting providers thrive on abuse, the DMCA serves as a reminder of a simple truth:

👉 The internet is not a lawless zone.

And for the victims, it remains a legitimate, legal and powerful weapon to regain control.