The study conducted by Pew Internet & American Life revealed 67 percent of file-sharers were not concerned that they were downloading copyrighted material.
As many as four out of five students in the survey said they were not worried about copyright laws at all.
"I like using music files to see what a band is like before I buy the CD and to download live songs that I can't get anywhere else," said Brittany Reed, a junior from Marietta.
But downloading files that are the property of artists infringes on copyrights and is illegal, according to the study.
"The amazing thing is that college students don't see anything wrong with downloading music and not paying for it. You wouldn't walk out of Best Buy with a CD in your pocket or purse, and that's the same thing," said William Lee, a professor in the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication.
A recent case involving four college students and the Recording Industry Associa-tion of America resulted in the students paying fines ranging from $12,000 to $17,500 each, according to the Association's Web site (www.riaa.com).
Representatives of the Association accused the students of encouraging large-scale music piracy by running file-sharing networks on campus, according to the site.
The fines paid by the students may seem heavy, but are far lighter than the $98 billion the recording industry reportedly planned to seek if the case went to court.
This settlement marks the first time the record industry recovered money from individuals in the United States accused of copyright infringement via file-sharing networks.
Downloading copyrighted materials using campus computers also violates the University's computer-use policies and is a violation of state law.
In Sept. 2002, Ben Albert, a sophomore from Roswell, downloaded the movie Austin Powers 3: Goldmember from Kazaa. The University then was notified by Warner Bros. Studios, which produced the film.
Albert violated Regulation X, a computer use policy in the University's code of conduct. His sanction from the student judiciary was to research copyright issues related to entertainment media and produce a fact sheet of useful hints for computer users.
"I think it's ridiculous to be fining college students who are strapped for cash. They should be going after the kingpins who actually encode and distribute the songs instead of just the regular guys," Albert said.
Despite the controversy over copyright infringement, University computer policies have not changed.
"Technically, it's possible (to track students), but it's not University policy to do so," said Eddie Hunter, an administrative specialist for Enterprise Information Technology Services (EITS).
-- Contributing: The Chronicle of Higher Education and News Hour