Socially|Mundane

Intellectual Property theft, a.k.a. "plagiarism' (my words as that's all it really is) is a highly volatile issue in Second Life and on the minds of practically most, if not all legitimate creators.

In many discussions about I.P. theft, it seems the Brazilian population comes-up as a discussion point a helluva lot more often than not. Is it true that the majority of I.P thieves are Brazilian? I have no idea. But they are are at the center of most spotlights on the subject, that's for certain

So much so that Prad Prathivi at Metaversally Speaking featured the very subject.

Well, accurate or not, truthful or not, for all you content creators who believe the Brazilians are 'raping' you blind by thieving your hard work... you're not alone. The United States Navy certainly feels your pain:

On the night of March 8, cruising 22,000 miles above the Earth, U.S. Navy communications satellite FLTSAT-8 suddenly erupted with illicit activity. Jubilant voices and anthems crowded the channel on a junkyard's worth of homemade gear from across vast and silent stretches of the Amazon: Ronaldo, a Brazilian soccer idol, had just scored his first goal with the Corinthians.

It was a party that won't soon be forgotten. Ten days later, Brazilian Federal Police swooped in on 39 suspects in six states in the largest crackdown to date on a growing problem here: illegal hijacking of U.S. military satellite transponders. [From The Great Brazilian Sat-Hack Crackdown]