Academic

Free Downloads And The Risk Of Viruses: The Case of the Kenneth Feinberg Lecture

By Dan Filler

What are the odds of contracting a computer virus when you download a free file?  I was pondering this question yesterday as I found an apparent link to a lecture I wanted to share with everyone.  It's the annual time to collect CLE credits and this year I purchased an hour-long lecture (worth one highly valued ethics credit) by Kenneth Feinberg.  Feinberg supervised distribution of compensation to 9/11 victims and he gives a great talk - raising interesting issues and telling compelling (and yes, humorous) stories.  He gave a very similar lecture at Alabama, when I was on the faculty, and we later published it in the Alabama Law Review.  After watching the CLE version of the talk, I wanted to post a link so that others could enjoy it.  He's given this talk many times, I think, so I figured at least one should be available for download.  And I did find a download that purports to be Feinberg giving the Pope and John Lecture at Northwestern University.  The problem: Northwestern does not provide a download of the speech...Kohit.net apparently does.

But I'm a virus-phobe.  And I don't really know what Kohit.net is.  So I never downloaded the talk to see if it's similar to the others Feinberg has given.  But this did lead me to wonder if my fear is grounded.  That is: as an epidemiological matter, are computer viruses actually widespread?  Is this a likely place to contract one?  We know that the threat of computer viruses is a weapon used to deter illegal downloads.  We also know that millions of people download anyway...which, if one believes in consumer rationality, suggests that they viruses are not in fact a big danger. 

What is the reality here?  Should people feel free to download Feinberg's talk here?  I'll leave that one to you.  And if his speech is good, let me know!

Full post as published by The Faculty Lounge on March 22, 2008 (boomark / email).