By Evan BrownAF Holdings, LLC v. Doe, 2012 WL 3835102 (N.D. Cal., September 4, 2012)
Copyright troll plaintiff AF Holdings sued defendant for, among other things, negligence for failing to secure his home wi-fi network. Plaintiff argued that defendant’s inaction allowed a third-party to commit large-scale infringement of AF Holdings’ copyrighted works.
Defendant moved to dismiss for failure to state a claim. The court granted the motion and dismissed the negligence claim.
It held that a defendant like the one in this case had no duty to protect another from harm in this situation of “non-feasance” (i.e, failing to do something) unless a special relationship existed which would give rise to such duty. In law school this principal is articulated through the hypothetical of standing on a lakeshore watching someone drowning — you don’t have to jump in to save the person unless you are a lifeguard (or the victim’s parent, or a member of some other very limited class).
(if you think your cyberpath hacked you, you have a high standard to meet - including proof. Speak to an attorney or internet law expert before you make assertions.)
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