[kernelbugs]

While I sympathize with the author's frustration (especially towards the one who intentionally republished their code without permission), it seems the author either does not fully understand the DMCA process or that it is not unique to GitHub.

I am not a lawyer, but it is my understanding that a DMCA counter notice asserts that - under penalty of purjury - there is a good faith belief that the DMCA takedown request is invalid. Once a host receives this, they wait 10-14 days and then must restore the hosted content. The only available next step in the process for the copyright holder is to use the court system.

"In order to protect against the possibility of erroneous or fraudulent notifications, certain safeguards are built into section 512. Subsection (g)(1) gives the subscriber the opportunity to respond to the notice and takedown by filing a counternotification. In order to qualify for the protection against liability for taking down material, the service provider must promptly notify the subscriber that it has removed or disabled access to the material. If the subscriber serves a counter notification complying with statutory requirements, including a statement under penalty of perjury that the material was removed or disabled through mistake or misidentification, then unless the copyright owner files an action seeking a court order against the subscriber, the service provider must put the material back up within 10-14 business days after receiving the counter notification.

Penalties are provided for knowing material misrepresentations in either a notice or a counter notice. Any person who knowingly materially misrepresents that material is infringing, or that it was removed or blocked through mistake or misidentification, is liable for any resulting damages (including costs and attorneys’ fees) incurred by the alleged infringer, the copyright owner or its licensee, or the service provider.(Section 512(f))." [1, Page 12]

[1]: https://www.copyright.gov/legislation/dmca.pdf