YouTube Settles Lawsuit With Channel Extortionist User

• A YouTube user from the United States agreed to pay $25k and settle a case with the video platform.
• The man was scamming YouTube via fake DMCA claims and was extorting channel owners.
• This case serves as a warning to all YouTubers who have aspirations of abusing the DMCA system.

The U.S. resident Christopher Brady agreed to pay $25000 and settle the case of the DMCA abuse that YouTube initiated against him on the District Court of Nebraska. After a month, the man figured that there wasn’t a lot that he could do to defend himself against the internet video giant, and agreed to pay the amount as well as to issue a public apology. YouTube wants this case to serve as an example to others who may try to do the same, extorting channel owners in exchange for a few hundred dollars.

This is an act that we described in great detail back in January, when a YouTuber published his case, following the platform’s disability to resolve the problem. The content created faced two bogus strikes from fake reports that were submitted by the extortionist. After that, the scammers threatened to deliver the final blow, which would take his channel down irreversibly. Multiple reports about cases like this one accumulated to the point that YouTube decided to do something about it, and so they introduced a more accurate and fair copyright claim system in July. Anyone who continued to abuse the DMCA claims system would face dire consequences from now on, and this is what happened with Mr. Brady.

The scammer pretended to be the legitimate owner of the content that he reported on videos of others. He then proceeded by demanding money from his victims, threatening to report them again if they wouldn’t pay. The message he sent to others was the following: "We struck you. Our request is $150 PayPal, or $75 BTC. You may send the money via goods/ services if you do not think we will cancel or hold up our end of the deal." Brandy admitted to having sent dozens of these notices, during his apologetic message.

While the case won’t go to the “jury trial-level”, it certainly was a bashing example for DMCA abusing scammers. Christopher Brady won’t be using YouTube again, and the platform was satisfied with the final outcome of the case. Most importantly, it is not the money, but the message that gets propagated. As for the victims of the scammer, they all had their channel statuses reinstated. Maybe they will also receive some form of additional compensation to make up for the losses they endured. Obviously, having your channel down affects your followership, engagement, and community growth.

Do you find the amount of $25000 to be fair considering what the scammer did? Let us know of your opinion on this in the comments down below, or on our socials, on Facebook and Twitter.