So I fucked up. I wanted to play the sims 3 so i tried to get it for free and on the internet i saw how to torrent and it was so easy so i gave it no 2nd thought. I didn’t know it was illegal, i mean it should’ve been self explanatory but yeah i didn’t think about that because as said it was so easy. I know that doesn’t save me from the legal consequences, I’m just really scared now that i have to pay a fine, it’s pretty expensive and i didn’t use a vpn so i’m most likely fucked. I found out that it’s actually a big deal in germany because i looked up how to increase the process speed because i had already waited 5 hours at that point. The program is installed on my computer (sims 3) now but i deleted the torrent program. I know that it’s too late but i have a few questions:
1: Are the fines extremely high if this was the only time ever you’ve torrented?
2: How likely is it that I even got caught? As said i didn’t use a vpn so…
3: I’m never gonna torrent again, so direct download it is from now on, right? Is there anything i have to consider when direct downloading in Germany? And is it safe?
4: Does it go on my criminal record if they find me? I mean they can’t prove it’s be but yk…
5: Can I play the game now if I got lucky and didn’t have to pay the fine? Like is it safe to open it if it’s already installed because i have it on my computer but I’m scared to open it?
Also I’m not really into tech, I know the basics, maybe a bit more but definitely not in the pirating area.
Thank you in advance!!!