The illegal trading of pirated music in the workplace can expose employers to significant copyright liability, waste computer resources, and hurt employee productivity. To reduce the possibility of a lawsuit, companies are encouraged to follow the guidelines offered by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which include establishing a companywide usage policy that addresses music piracy, making sure that the policy is enforced, and addressing any violations that come to their attention. To assist a company in these policies, there a number of software packages available that monitor network users and restrict the kinds of files that can be downloaded.
See "New legal tangle: Pirated music moves into workplace", Tim Sprinkle, The Christian Science Monitor, November 30, 2003