Copyright violation: copyrighted content detected (a virus?)?

Question

my brother's computer has a problem, when he turns it on we get a "Copyright Violation alert"
It says 
Files detected:
F.E.A.R 2: Project origin
Mirror's Edge
The Wheel Man
Assassin's Creed
The Sims 3
and it says that it has maximum penalties of "5 years in prison and up to $250,000 in fines)
There's an Evidence list, but when we click it it says that it can't be displayed.

He said that there were files he downloaded (but doesn't remember where) then they were on his computer, he tried to open one- and this came up.
(I swear, he is the hardest person in the world to get information out of- he said he was trying to download trial versions of these games... Although he owns most of them already. I think we're getting some lying here, or miscommunication)

Are we in deep ****, or is this a virus? Please tell me this is a virus, I've been doing some searching on it, but I can't find anything. There was a website it said to go, icpp-online.com (since it's a .com this makes me think that it IS a virus trying to get us the pay them a lot of money)

I really don't think this seems real, but I can't find anything on it with google. 
Any idea???

raina_vissora · Accepted Answer

Well, first of all... I'm not sure why you're expecting to be referred to a "governmental website" for a copyright violation.  There are MANY legitimate 3rd party copyright protection companies that handle tracking down violations for copyright holders.  The government has little to do with it.

That said, it's almost certainly malware/spyware trying to get you to "buy" your way out of trouble for pirating games.  Were it real, you'd be getting a certified letter via US mail notifying you of the violation and likely giving you the option to pay a fee or be sued... not a partially broken alert window on your computer.

Beyond that, this icpp-online.com doesn't seem very legit to me... their description of their product is vague, their "partners" are entities that are known to use a different set of software to track violations (plus ICPP is supposedly based in Switzerland and all of their so-called partners are U.S. organizations... seems a bit fishy to me), and there's next to no info about the company itself.

Plus, a simple whois search on the icpp-online.com domain says that it's registered to a guy from Missouri.... and has only been around since Feb 24 2010.

http://whois.domaintools.com/icpp-online.com

To me, this absolutely screams scam...

James F · Answer

Its malware or a virus. Probably a fake file in place of a game your brother tried to pirate. If it were real the police would'nt put a fake message on your computer telling you you've pirated games, they'd be there in person already.

Anonymous · Answer

-New Update-
Okay they're not who they say they are. They're trying to get some money out of you BUT Your brother should stop downloading them off the internet. Either that or have him look up hot to be safe when downloading them off the internet. And like they other guy said. They'll be at your door. ICCP-Online is a scam...

Make sure you guys have the latest update of your Anti-Virus and make sure it's active.

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Copyright violation: copyrighted content detected (a virus?)?

3 Answers