Professor and lawyer specializing in intellectual property and fashion law, partner at Moreau Valverde Advogados The protection of copyright in films, series, photographic images and software, especially with regard to actions focused on combating piracy, has been widely debated. Every day, thousands of people receive extrajudicial notices in their inboxes informing them that they have violated the rights of third parties, usually through the use of torrent file sharing applications. A detailed analysis of what is happening reveals legitimate cases, opportunists, who take advantage of gray areas in the law to make a profit, and even scammers, who impersonate rightsholders in order to gain a pecuniary advantage. Frequent reports since 2020 have dealt with copyright trolls, the name given to actions considered to be aggressive and opportunistic in order to collect money for alleged copyright infringement. One example is threatening notices charging astronomical amounts for copyright infringement, without proof of ownership or misuse. Most of these notices deal with the misuse of software, films downloaded without authorization and the use of images on websites. What is surprising and worrying is that the majority of the reports treat any out-of-court collection action relating to the misuse of copyright works as a copyright troll, without differentiating between legitimate and illegitimate actions. Without the proper distinction, those who receive the notification end up ignoring these missives. They believe they are all a "scam" applied to obtain a pecuniary advantage. But that's not all that's happening. Yes, there are undue charges, with no basis or proof of ownership. This should really be ignored and can also be the subject of a reverse action to stop the charge and obtain compensation for undue charging. But there are legitimate charges. After all, software, photographs, films, music and other goods from this industry are assets protected by the Copyright Law and must be used with the proper authorization from the owner. When this doesn't happen, it's up to the owner or their attorney-in-fact to claim that the use be refrained from and the corresponding compensation, which is an action supported by the legislation that regulates the matter. The entertainment industry already has the technical means to track down illegal downloads, to assess whether the form of use is chargeable, and to intensively tighten the use of asymmetric resources. Therefore, before ignoring and treating any notification as a copyright troll, the person notified should seek help to verify whether it really is a troll or whether there has been an illegal act and the copyright holder is merely claiming their right legally. In this case, once the legitimacy and ownership of the right has been established, it is up to the infringer to try to reach an agreement to avoid further damage. Ignoring a legitimate copyright claim can result in major losses, which are not limited to compensation for material and moral damages, but also criminal sanctions. To avoid this problem, the recommendation is to use licensed products. The entertainment industry has developed to the point where it is possible to significantly reduce the cost of access, including many forms at no cost to the user. In any case, if for some reason you need or choose to use non-legal resources, you should be prepared to be charged. From the resource provider, who will use your equipment and data for their own interests. And from the rights holder, who already has the means to get to your machine and identify, by legal means, who the owner is.