Last month, we posted a story about a film production company's lawsuit against more than 23,000 users of BitTorrent—a peer-to-peer file-sharing program—who allegedly illegally downloaded the movie “The Expendables.” Today, CNN.com reports that another movie studio, Voltage Pictures, also is cracking down on stolen intellectual property. The studio is suing 25,000 BitTorrent users for allegedly illegally downloading the film “The Hurt Locker.”

Some critics say the group that filed both suits—the U.S. Copyright Group—is exploiting copyright law by scaring defendants into paying settlements between $1,500 and $2,500 instead of litigating, which could lead to expensive legal fees and potential penalties.

Last month, we posted a story about a film production company's lawsuit against more than 23,000 users of BitTorrent—a peer-to-peer file-sharing program—who allegedly illegally downloaded the movie “The Expendables.” Today, CNN.com reports that another movie studio, Voltage Pictures, also is cracking down on stolen intellectual property. The studio is suing 25,000 BitTorrent users for allegedly illegally downloading the film “The Hurt Locker.”

Some critics say the group that filed both suits—the U.S. Copyright Group—is exploiting copyright law by scaring defendants into paying settlements between $1,500 and $2,500 instead of litigating, which could lead to expensive legal fees and potential penalties.