Why Cybersecurity Matters for Musicians

“Get a good lawyer!” — This was the legit advice that Taylor Swift said when asked about her advice to those who wanted to be a successful singer. This was during her 2016 interview with Vogue. Indeed, getting a good lawyer for the security of your music files and your career is similar to crafting your cybersecurity measures. 

Using residential proxies allows you to secure your music in cyberspace. Proxies are capable of providing you with additional security in all your internet activities, especially the confidential information that you are storing. Proxies come in different types with a variety of features. Choose the appropriate proxy based on your needs. 

Leaking has also become a major threat in the music industry. This became a serious concern with the rise of internet users. With the rise of internet users, there has been an equal rise of websites and applications that users can access to download songs and music for free.

In 1999, the case involving Napster, a software program that allowed internet users to download free copies of music, was the beginning of the end for free music exchange in the cyberspace. 

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) sued the Napster operator for copyright infringement in 1999. On July 28, 2000, the court decided that Napster had violated copyright laws for music piracy and exchange. The court then ordered them to stop trading. 

Music Industry Revenue Statistics

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) recorded a 9.2% growth in the 2020 music industry revenue statistics. Accordingly, this is the fifth straight year that they have noted growth in said industry. Paid subscriptions and on-demand streaming services have also contributed to this increase. 

Further, full-service paid subscriptions reached 14.6% growth in 2020. Meanwhile, the limited tier paid subscriptions increased to 13.4% compared to previous years. RIAA has also noted an increase in the number of subscriptions. They now have 75.5 million subscribers in 2020 compared to 60.4 million subscribers in 2019. 

The Internet has become an effective platform for the music industry to increase its revenue in the United States. Dubbed as the home to the world’s biggest music market, the United States has become proof of the growing market for music enthusiasts.

From becoming a functional platform for music growth, the internet has also become its own worst enemy. The threats of illegal distribution, leaking of music files before official release, and other threats have caused a decline in monetization for many groups. 

Cybersecurity Measures are your friends

Cybersecurity measures are your best friend in this game. Its function is important in protecting and straying your crafts away from possible attacks — in this case, digital attacks. These attacks could access and distort your music file, hold them hostage for ransomware, and even be stolen and leaked to the world wide web. In some worst cases, these attackers could destroy your name in the industry. 

• Competition in the Market Industry

Overeager fans and bad actors trying to leak content are not the only concern in the music industry. Music taste and options have also greatly expanded in recent years. Personal formulas mixed with creative and structural elements have created many new styles of music, introducing more people to varying styles of music and further diluting what’s out there in the music world. 

This enhanced competition has created additional incentives for people to steal ideas from another one and often use dirty tactics to stay on top. That’s why it’s ever more important for one to secure his/her music files. As you hit the spotlight in this industry, more hackers will be interested in you and you could become the next target. 

These attacks may take shape in many different forms. This could be a simple email or text message from what you might think is a known associate with a malicious link that could hijack your phone or computer with a Trojan horse to something much more sophisticated when it comes to more well established artists. 

Source: unsplash.com

Aside from protecting your name in this industry, how could you further protect your music? First, password-protect your music files. If your music is already being streamed, consult with a legal professional as soon as possible. They could help plan out measures to prevent stealing, copying, and taking away monetization from you. 

Conclusion

Music industry revenues and markets are growing and expected to keep rising in the coming years. Consequently, the volume of incidents involving cybersecurity will likely follow suit. That is why it is important now - more than ever - that any professional artist or rising star should ensure that their artistic contents are protected and safe from any potential attack. 

Your music is your life. It is a representation of you, the people around you, and all the intangibles that makes you uniquely yourself. So do all that you can to protect your music and the story that it carries. With cyber security measures in place, you can safely take your career to the next level, as you also step on the journey of exploring yourself and inspiring others with your music.

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Name: Daniel Martin

October 18, 2021

Bio: Daniel Martin loves building winning content teams. Over the past few years, he has built high-performance teams that have produced engaging content enjoyed by millions of users. Dani also enjoys photography and playing the carrom board.