I'm writing to urge you to oppose the DEFEND IP Act (H.R. 10575 / S. 5529), which would establish a federal website-blocking system.
While protecting intellectual property matters, this legislation goes too far. It would require ISPs and DNS providers to block access to websites that copyright holders accuse of foreign piracy—often through ex parte court proceedings where neither the site nor its users have a chance to respond. Sites can only escape blocking by appearing in U.S. court, submitting to jurisdiction, and posting bonds—an impossible hurdle for many small operations.
The EFF, Public Knowledge, Re:Create Coalition, and several major ISPs (including Comcast, Verizon, and Charter) have raised serious concerns. Their points are worth considering:
- Due process is weak: Courts can order blocks without hearing from affected sites first, and even block live-streaming events based on predicted infringement.
- Overblocking is inevitable: Broad terms mean legitimate sites risk getting caught. When that happens, providers face no liability—the innocent site has to sue to get unblocked.
- It sets a dangerous precedent: Once this infrastructure exists, the scope can easily expand beyond its original intent.
As someone who depends on the open internet for work and communication, I can't support giving the government broad new powers to cut off access to entire websites. There are better ways to fight piracy that don't turn ISPs into copyright enforcers or undermine the fundamental structure of how the internet works.
Please vote against this bill.
Thank you for your time and service.
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