1998–2010 · Security

The DMCA: how a 1998 copyright law reshaped what you can do with technology

Last reviewed 6 October 2026

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act banned breaking copy protection and created notice-and-takedown. Both rules have been controversial ever since.

What the law did

The US Digital Millennium Copyright Act was signed in October 1998 to implement the 1996 WIPO copyright treaties. Two parts became famous.

Section 1201 made it illegal to circumvent “technological protection measures”, such as DVD encryption or e-book locks, and to distribute tools that do so. That applies even when the underlying use, such as making a personal backup, might otherwise be lawful.

Section 512 created “safe harbours” for online services. A host is not liable for users’ infringing material if it removes it promptly after a copyright owner sends a takedown notice.

Early test cases

Within a few years the anti-circumvention rules were being used in ways critics had predicted. Film studios sued over DeCSS, a program that decrypted DVDs, and won an injunction against publishing or linking to it in 2000.

In 2001 Russian programmer Dmitry Sklyarov was arrested in the US after a conference talk about weaknesses in Adobe’s e-book protection. His employer, ElcomSoft, was later acquitted by a jury. Researchers who studied music watermarking were threatened with legal action over publishing their results.

Companies also tried to use the law to block compatible products such as replacement printer cartridges and universal garage door openers. US appeals courts rejected those claims in 2004, ruling that the DMCA was not meant to stop ordinary competition.

Hindrance or help?

Supporters argued that without legal protection for DRM, digital distribution of films, music and books would not have happened. Critics, including the Electronic Frontier Foundation and Creative Commons supporters, said the law chilled security research, blocked fair use and gave copyright owners control over devices.

Takedown notices raised a separate problem: because hosts remove material first and ask questions later, notices have been misused to silence criticism or harass people.

What changed later

The US Copyright Office reviews exemptions to the anti-circumvention ban every three years. Exemptions have grown to cover things such as unlocking phones, jailbreaking devices, accessibility and repair. The EU’s 2001 Copyright Directive brought similar anti-circumvention rules to Europe, including the UK.

The arguments of the 2000s, about whether locks on content protect creators or restrict users, still shape debates about DRM, right to repair and online platforms.