I have never heard of this happening. And I've gotten multiple cease and desist letters from my ISP. ISPs don't really have the case for a suit anyways, but there are third party companies that companies like Disney will pay to watch torrents for them and ask your ISP to send you that letter.
A decade or so ago, there were some widely-publicized cases of folks who got absolutely ruined with six- or seven-figure judgements against them for copyright infringement.
Maybe it was a tactic the copyright cartel used in the mid-2000s and then stopped or something, but it was enough to shift folks' behavior such that using VPNs became the norm.
You are correct, it's super uncommon to get sued for pirating unless you're a major player. If you get busted by your ISP too many times, though, they may give you the boot. My ISP has a 9 strikes in one rolling year policy (at least last I knew).
I have never heard of this happening. And I've gotten multiple cease and desist letters from my ISP. ISPs don't really have the case for a suit anyways, but there are third party companies that companies like Disney will pay to watch torrents for them and ask your ISP to send you that letter.
A decade or so ago, there were some widely-publicized cases of folks who got absolutely ruined with six- or seven-figure judgements against them for copyright infringement.
Example from 2012.
Maybe it was a tactic the copyright cartel used in the mid-2000s and then stopped or something, but it was enough to shift folks' behavior such that using VPNs became the norm.
You are correct, it's super uncommon to get sued for pirating unless you're a major player. If you get busted by your ISP too many times, though, they may give you the boot. My ISP has a 9 strikes in one rolling year policy (at least last I knew).