Author: Andy

Anti-piracy outfit BREIN has been one of the leading pro-copyright groups for many years.

Focusing on piracy in the Internet space, Netherlands-based BREIN has a track record of targeting torrent and other similar sites operating within its jurisdiction.

In recent years BREIN has began producing annual reports detailing its activities of the preceding 12 months. The group has just published its 2015 edition and its clear the outfit has been busy.

Site takedowns

One of BREIN’s main strategies is to take piracy sites offline, something it regularly achieves by threatening their hosting providers. BREIN’s reputation is well-known in the Netherlands so in many cases minimum coercion is required. That results in big headline numbers.

According to BREIN’s report, 343 pirate sites were taken down in 2015. The vast majority (150) are described as “link farms”, forums and similar platforms where links to files on third-party hosting sites are shared.

Streaming sites came in second place with 96 takedowns, with torrent sites in third with 63. Seven of the sites related to Popcorn Time.

BREIN says that pirate sites often try to hide their true locations behind Cloudflare’s services but that doesn’t appear to hinder the group when attempting to shut them down and trace their owners. When they can be tracked to The Netherlands, some are given the opportunity to enter into a settlement.

“A signed withdrawal statement with a penalties for future infringement plus a contribution towards costs and damages must be paid. How high that is depends on the circumstances of the case,” BREIN explains.

Targeting uploaders and other community members

While there has been some activity in the past, during 2015 BREIN made a number of announcements relating to its pursuit of individual file-sharers. Targeting those at the more serious end of the scale, BREIN cherry-picked a few individuals responsible for uploading lots of content.

Among them were three members of release group DRT. They were subjected to a court order and agreed to settle with BREIN. According to the anti-piracy group, they also did some snitching on other members of their group.

In separate action, BREIN targeted the brains behind release group DMT. He reportedly settled for thousands of euros and put up a warning on torrent indexes including KickassTorrents.

Together with another busted colleague the pair subsequently tried to pay their ‘fines’ via a crowdfunding operation. That was eventually discontinued after reported threats from BREIN. The anti-piracy group now confirms that it considered the fundraiser as generating income from illegal activities.

Earlier in the year, BREIN said it also obtained an injunction against “an important moderator” on one of the “largest illegal BitTorrent sites”. In line with BREIN policy, the site itself was not named.

In 2016, BREIN says its pursuit of important pirates will increase and that it has deployed “special software” to help with the task.

“The system is registered with the Dutch data protection authority (CBP) which has issued a certified statement after examination the legality for the processing of personal data in this system by BREIN,” the anti-piracy group reports.

In future, those caught by BREIN will be required to sign a cease and desist agreement and pay a contribution towards costs and damages, which currently amount to around 12,500 euros.

Targeting Google

In 2015, BREIN says it sent more than 5.7 million infringing content reports to Google. That brings its grand total to more than 12.5 million notices since it began its takedown program in 2012.

BREIN’s report is available here (Dutch)

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and ANONYMOUS VPN services.

In the days before Christmas, pirates around the globe received their gifts early when DVD screener copies of some of the hottest movies began leaking to the Internet.

One of those was the Quentin Tarantino movie The Hateful Eight, which appeared online several days before its theatrical debut. There can be little doubt that Tarantino and his associates went into meltdown behind the scenes but its taken until now for a key member of the team to speak publicly on the topic.

In a guest piece published in THR, Richard Gladstein, president and founder of FilmColony and producer of The Hateful Eight, addresses the issue of online piracy.

Noting that his movie has now been illegally downloaded more than 1.3 million times since Christmas Day, Gladstein smoothly ignores CM8, the group that placed his content online. Instead the producer finds a much broader scapegoat – Google.

“Google and YouTube have the ability to create a vaccine that could eradicate the disease of content theft. But to the millions of us who watch as our works are stolen over and over and over and over again, millions and millions of times, Google is at best offering us an aspirin, and at worst, ignoring the disease,” Gladstein writes.

For someone on the sharp end of one of the most controversial leaks of recent years, Gladstein speaks calmly. However, his criticism of Google is not new among filmmakers yet still manages to feel misplaced.

Gladstein paints a picture of a giant corporation determined (if only through neglect) to ignore the plight of creators everywhere, while throwing up roadblocks to deter them from protecting their work from piracy. How? By throwing up a ‘fair use’ smokescreen.

“‘Fair Use’ is an important exemption and distinction to copyright law. It permits non-copyright owners to engage in analysis, criticism, and parody of copyrighted material,” the producer concedes.

“However, the ‘Fair Use’ provision and debate has also proven to be an extremely useful tool for those looking to distract from or ignore the real copyright infringement issue: piracy.”

Gladstein says the distraction created by Google centers around the recent announcement that it will offer legal protection to four videos which all utilize copyrighted works but in classic fair use scenarios.

If you’re struggling to see the link between supporting fair use and ignoring piracy you’re probably not alone, but Gladstein feels he’s onto something.

“There is no way that the uploading of entire programs and movies to YouTube and other video hosting sites falls under ‘Fair Use.’ What Google and other search engines are doing when they direct a user to those files is aiding and abetting criminal activity,” he explains.

“[Google’s] incessant attempts to argue that there is a ‘Fair Use’ problem is meant to deliberately obscure the real and massive problem of tens of millions of illegal downloads of entire songs, albums, movies, and TV shows.”

If that is indeed Google’s intention, it could be argued the company is failing miserably. The issue of online piracy is persistently and widely documented and is rarely out of the headlines. However, Gladstein’s criticism of the search giant arrives at an important juncture in the piracy debate.

On the last day of 2015, the U.S. Government launched a public consultation to evaluate the effectiveness of the DMCA’s Safe Harbor provisions. Among other things, the consultation will address the key points raised by Gladstein in his attack on Google.

On one side, Gladstein and other like-minded individuals will argue that the takedown provisions of the DMCA are cumbersome and outdated, and that companies like Google hide behind the law in order to take as little responsibility for piracy as possible.

On the other, service providers and advocacy groups will raise concerns over DMCA notice abuses that can stifle free speech and restrain fair use.

In the meantime, however, Gladstein simply calls on Google to act with respect.

“All I ask of Google is that they show respect for all creatives and copyright owners and not infringe on the gift of what we already own – the legal right to share our work with the public in the way we choose, at the time we choose, and allow all crews and financiers to receive the financial benefits they rightfully deserve,” Gladstein.

Since the day of its leak, Google has been removing thousands of links to the movie The Hateful Eight from its search results. Some might argue, what more can it do? Hollywood has that answer – stay tuned.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and ANONYMOUS VPN services.

After being founded in 2006, authorities in Sweden branded private torrent site SwePiracy as one of the most important locations for the illegal distribution of local and international films.

Following a torrent site crackdown in the wake of the “guilty” verdict in the Pirate Bay trial during April 2009, SwePiracy disappeared for a few weeks, but reappeared less than a month later.

Anti-piracy group Antipiratbyrån (now Rights Alliance) said that in response to warnings for the site to close down, the operators of the tracker had taken measures to protect themselves instead.

Several years later during February 2012, authorities ran out of patience, with police in Sweden and the Netherlands taking coordinated action to shut down the site.

While Swedish police targeted the operators of the site, their Dutch counterparts took down SwePiracy’s servers in their jurisdiction. However, as is so often the case, overall downtime was relatively brief and SwePiracy laer reappeared via a new host in Canada.

Today, almost three years later, the alleged operator of the site will appear in court in Sweden. The now 24-year-old man is the alleged founder of the site and the person responsible for its resurrection after the raid.

According to District Prosecutor Henrik Rasmusson the man faces charges of violating copyright law due to unlawfully making available copyrighted movies online or assisting users to do the same. Rasmusson says that a lengthy custodial sentence is possible.

“Under the criminal scale he risks punishment ranging from fines to several years in prison,” Rasmusson says.

In addition to charges that he ran a site servicing tens of thousands of members, the prosecution claim that the man also collected around $100,000 in donations to keep the site running. However, it appears that the main motivation was not to make money, but to have fun.

“In this case, it is my assumption before the trial that the aim [for the accused] was to test the [torrent] technology and to share and make available video because it was entertaining and an interest he had,” Rasmusson notes.

But despite the absence of a financial motive, Swedish authorities have pursued this case for more than three years and the site itself for much longer, which suggests they don’t intend to go lightly on the 24-year-old.

At the time of the raid, Antipiratbyrån (Rights Alliance) said it also intended to seek damages from the site “according to The Pirate Bay model.” The case now centers around a sample 73 movies with the man being sued for more than $2.9m by local companies and international giants including Disney.

The trial is expected to run until Friday.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and ANONYMOUS VPN services.

Piracy can never be stopped. Piracy will always be around. Where there’s a will to break copy protection, there’s a way. These are all comments regularly heard in piracy circles and to date, they’ve largely been proven accurate.

But while trying to protect movies and music using technological measures is by now almost a lost cause, the same cannot be said about video games. While copying a title was a trivial process several years ago, in many cases more and more roadblocks are now being put in pirates’ way.

In the past most games would be playable for free before their official debut but increasingly pirates are being made to wait for big titles to have their protection defeated, or ‘cracked’ as it’s more commonly known. In fact, aside from many dozens of dedicated piracy forums, there’s even an entire sub-Reddit community dedicated to providing the status of cracks.

One of the hottest topics involves the Avalanche Studios/Square Enix title Just Cause 3. Released on December 1, 2015 and despite massive demand, the game has still not been cracked. The problem appears to lie with the robustness of the technology protecting the game.

Just Cause 3 uses the latest iteration of Denuvo, an anti-tamper technology developed by Denuvo Software Solutions GmbH. While its secrets are best known to its creators, Denuvo is a secondary encryption system which protects existing and underlying DRM products.

In 2014 the product made the headlines after successfully protecting Dragon Age: Inquisition for almost a month, a very respectable time in cracking circles.

In the end it was Chinese cracking group 3DM that brought down that instance of Denuvo but the Germany-based company continued to tweak and achieved increasing protection periods on recent games in the FIFA series. FIFA 16 is currently Denuvo protected and that game still hasn’t been cracked, despite being released in September.

But Just Cause 3 is the current hot potato and despite having released an endless supply of cracks for other titles (and having had success against Denuvo in the past), the cracks (excuse the pun) are beginning to show at 3DM.

In a posting on her blog, 3DM forum founder ‘Bird Sister’ (also known as Phoenix) has revealed the frustrations being experienced with Just Cause 3.

“Recently, many people have asked about cracks for ‘Just Cause 3′, so here is a centralized answer to this question. The last stage is too difficult and Jun [cracking guy] nearly gave up, but last Wednesday I encouraged him to continue,” Bird Sister explains.

While games pirates everywhere will be willing Jun on to complete what 3DM ultimately believe will be an achievable task, Bird Sister isn’t optimistic about the future. In fact, she paints somewhat of a doomsday scenario.

“I still believe that this game can be compromised. But according to current trends in the development of encryption technology, in two years time I’m afraid there will be no free games to play in the world,” she adds.

While Denuvo is no doubt proving a difficult nut to crack, two years is an awful long time in technology and things are always prone to change. Furthermore, Denuvo is only used on a limited number of gaming titles, reportedly due to its relative expense.

But what is difficult to deny here is the window of opportunity provided by the Denuvo system. Hardcore gamers are notoriously impatient which almost certainly means that one, two or three months of waiting for a crack is coming up for a quarter of a year late to the game. Another three months after that and many gamers will be looking forward to FIFA 17 and Just Cause 4, leaving pirates in their wake.

Nevertheless, the seemingly uncrackable always seem to fall, eventually. During the past few days it was revealed that the PS4 has been compromised to run Linux. While not to the level of playing full-blown pirate games yet, that might lie around the corner. Exactly when, no one seems to know, but most gamers won’t have the patience to wait.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and ANONYMOUS VPN services.

As the brains and machinery behind uTorrent and the Mainline BitTorrent clients, BitTorrent Inc. is the market leader in consumer focused, peer-to-peer file-sharing tools.

Combined, these clients enjoy around 170 million active users per month, a massive userbase that’s unrivaled in the marketplace. In total, BitTorrent Inc. serves a cool 200 million adverts to its users every single day.

But despite these impressive numbers, revenues for BitTorrent Inc. remain modest. As previously reported, the company sells its worldwide traffic for just 7 cents per 1,000 views, one of the lowest tiers in the ad industry.

While the situation is complex, one of BitTorrent Inc’s problems is how some view the company as being closely tied to piracy. For many, when people download a pirate movie or album using BitTorrent, that means that somehow BitTorrent Inc is involved, but that has parallels with holding Mozilla to account when people use Firefox for nefarious purposes.

In response, BitTorrent Inc has tried extremely hard to reposition itself not only as a software vendor but also as an artist development and promotion platform. A successful play here could help to boost those low-cent views to something carrying more value. The company hopes that a new appointment will play a part in that.

In a job listing posted a few hours ago, the San Francisco based company reveals it’s searching for a new Sales Director to drive media demand across Western Europe.

Responsible for the company’s publishing network across desktop, mobile and web-based platforms, the successful candidate will be expected to establish and develop relationships across the advertising spectrum and “grow company presence across all geos.”

But perhaps of most interest is the requirement for the individual to put in place a strategy to “optimize revenues” by getting a better return on available advertising space.

Part of that will be achieved by meeting with agencies and trading desks but the underlying strategy here is to attract reputable companies or, as BitTorrent Inc puts it, “drive demand from major brands.”

And when targeting major brands, BitTorrent Inc. wants to go straight to the top.

“Inclusive activities are meeting with all agencies for major holding companies for relevant brands, industry events, trade shows, ad clubs and social participation,” the company explains.

But while branding is an excellent way to get more for a product, it is very likely that the BitTorrent ‘brand’ will have already appeared on advertisers’ radars, and not in a good way either.

Despite the company’s efforts to distance itself from piracy, the entertainment industries are putting significant resources into ensuring that big companies do not pump money into the piracy ecosystem, whether that’s by placing ads on blatant piracy sites or via platforms that help to enable infringement.

And it’s very clear that groups such as the RIAA view BitTorrent Inc. as an enabler of such infringement. Last summer Brad Buckles, Executive Vice President of Anti-Piracy at the RIAA wrote to the company with a plea for it to get serious over piracy.

“The software client applications developed, marketed and distributed by BitTorrent Inc. facilitated approximately 75% of at least 1.6 million torrent based infringements in the United States upon which a notice was sent in 2014,” Buckles wrote.

“[If not endorsing piracy] is indeed your business philosophy, then we believe it is only right and proper for BitTorrent, Inc to take steps to reduce their facilitation of infringement.”

So the company is left with somewhat of a dilemma. Should major brand advertising be secured, that will soon appear in uTorrent alongside infringing downloads being carried out by tens of millions of users. As a result it won’t take long for the entertainment industries to pile pressure on the brands to withdraw.

On the other hand, if BitTorrent Inc implements some kind of anti-piracy system to inspire confidence with the brands, a large portion of its 170 million userbase will get very serious about moving to other platforms. That will drastically reduce both eyeballs and revenue while ensuring that current advertisers reach fewer people than they do at the moment.

There’s a tipping point in there somewhere but either way, it’s clear that whoever takes on the new role at BitTorrent Inc. will have their work cut out to bring on the brands in today’s climate.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and ANONYMOUS VPN services.

It took an awful long time to arrive but late 2014 the movie and music industries eventually reached agreement with the UK’s leading ISPs to send warnings to subscribers suspected of downloading content from file-sharing networks.

The warning scheme (which is currently notable only by its absence) is part of the Creative Content UK (CCUK) initiative which marries the ‘stick’ of direct-to-door warnings with a broader educational campaign focused on deterrence.

As previously reported the first campaign titled “Get It Right from a Genuine Site” used a colorful cartoon to encourage viewers to boycott ‘pirate’ sites in favor of those which pay licensing fees supporting the entertainment industries.

And now, at the start of a new year, CCUK’s latest initiative can be found on the Intellectual Property Office’s education site, which was launched under the ‘Cracking Ideas‘ brand last November.

Fronted by clay animation stars Wallace and Gromit, ‘Cracking Ideas’ is offering a lesson plan which asks 14-19 year old students to consider “the impact and ethics of film piracy, the consequences of downloading a film illegally and the impact of film piracy on the creative industries.”

Produced in partnership with The Industry Trust, The Intellectual Property Office and the Federation Against Copyright Theft, the lesson (titled “Vin Diesel’s Socks”) is built around a student-created anti-piracy PSA of the same name which questions who will fund the action star’s footwear if people pirate rather pay.

When placed side-by-side with ‘classics’ such as “You Wouldn’t Download a Car“, the change of tone is notable.

The lesson is centered around 18 slides with accompanying notes encouraging teachers and other educators to question students on issues including illegal uploading.

“Why do you think people distribute and upload films illegally? What do you think are the consequences of this activity?” one slide asks. Students are given time to think but are then offered these reasons.

Slide

It’s no real surprise that cash is put forward as the prime motivator, even though the country’s most recently jailed pirates made not a single penny from their activities. It is interesting, however, that the slide balances this with the honest statement that pirates often beat legitimate providers to the market, with pricing and availability.

Mirroring similar campaigns underway in the United States, the lesson also reinforces the notion that ‘pirate’ sites are dangerous places. It also falls back on the controversial ‘disappearing money’ argument that money not outlaid on movies is somehow not spent elsewhere in the economy.

But credit where it’s due. A later slide concedes that people who pirate content online are often the same people who pay to visit the cinema, buy DVDs and stream content from legitimate sources.

Slide

Later, students are asked to consider “Should things that are online be free?” and “Should you do things just because they are technologically possible?”

But what if students believe that piracy generates free buzz, that if they download something and rave about it to their friends, that will boost sales? The lesson’s covering notes provide guidance for teachers on how to respond.

“You may like to explain that creators of films, music or any other product should be in control of how they distribute their product. If they want to share it for free that is their choice, but illegal distribution removes that choice from the creator,” the notes suggest.

And, if students think that plenty of people still go to the cinema and film companies continue to make lots of money, the suggested response is as follows.

“You can suggest that it can take a long time for many films to make a profit and that unless people pay for the film at the cinema, online, on DVD etc, films will not cover their costs or make a profit, this will affect the quality and range of films that are made, and the career opportunities available in the film industry.”

But what if students get really tricky by suggesting that the film industry “is behind the times” by not serving those who want to watch movies as soon as they become available?

“You can suggest to students that some films are available online and on DVD at the same time as they are in the cinema, but that watching a film in the cinema is a different experience to watching it at home and many filmmakers and studios want their films to be an experience, and viewed in the optimum conditions. How a film is released and how much the creators charge for their product is their choice.”

In a later slide students are advised about being monitored online by copyright holders and the subsequent ISP warnings their activity might generate. Notably there is no mention of any punishments or references to breaking the law. The warnings are mentioned solely as a way to direct alleged infringers to legitimate content. This is a big change from past campaigns.

Finally, students are shown slides detailing the work of the Federation Against Copyright Theft but again there is little for them to feel threatened over. Instead, teachers are encouraged to explain that even pirates love movies.

“Explain that many people who access pirated film actually love film and want the industry to continue making great movies. If students love film, they should look for legal providers through Find Any Film next time. Play the Moments Worth Paying For/Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer and ask students why they think film is worth paying for,” the notes to teachers conclude.

The Vin Diesel’s Socks lesson plan can be downloaded here.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and ANONYMOUS VPN services.

The endlessly entertaining /r/trackers and /r/torrents subs of Reddit are inhabited by a broad range of BitTorrent users, from the just starting out to the seriously experienced. As a result discussions range from the very basic to the fairly complex which makes them great environments for those of all skill levels.

The million dollar question

Pretty regularly the topic lands on the differences between public and private torrent sites and the inevitable million dollar question: Which is the best?

As someone who has seen this conversation play out dozens of times before it’s no surprise what happens next. Users of each type of site regularly batten down the hatches and go head to head with their perceived rivals in a battle to be won at all costs.

But the truth is this: public and private sites and their users might sometimes pretend to hate or have disrespect for each other, but the existence of both amounts to a match made in heaven. They squabble and bicker in public, but quietly they crave each other’s attention. In fact, these secret lovers can barely stand to be apart.

‘Elite’ torrent users didn’t appear by magic

Many (not all) private trackers work on the assumption that their users are among the elite. These individuals have perfectly honed systems, underpinned by the finest torrent client setups ever seen. Their sharing manners are impeccable and their access to content unprecedented.

Surprise!! These users didn’t simply appear out of thin air.

The majority of today’s “elite” users will have started out on the public torrent scene where they picked up knowledge and developed their skills over time, possibly several years. Like many they will have heard of the private tracker streets paved with gold and aspired to tread them one day.

Eventually, when luck, judgment and an existing member with invites all collided, Joe Public will have entered the Promised Land. The chances are he will have been impressed by what he found. Many private trackers display exceptional attention to detail, are meticulous in their presentation, and have great communities to boot.

But make no mistake, without his training on the public scene Mr Public would not have lasted long on a private tracker. Thankfully he already knew many if not all of the basics and while private site staff might not like the public scene too much, they are grateful to it for educating their new recruit. Rarely will they admit it, however.

Join us – if you can (but it won’t be easy)

Perhaps one of the most interesting things about the private / public rivalry is how the former absolutely needs the latter to boost its ranks. Many private tracker users/staffers hang out on /r/trackers and /r/torrents and many are happy to answer questions. Need movies faster? Better quality music? Cure for arthritis? Join a private tracker!

However, as many advice recipients discover, that’s often easier said than done. Most private sites have strict limits on the number of members allowed in and the majority require users to be invited. Several demand that prospective members sit an entrance exam or interview to get in. It can be a real hassle.

No room at the inn :(

That said, limited availability of member slots exists for a number of reasons, not least technical limitations and other practicalities of running a relatively small site.

While this is a nuisance for those looking to get in, this is a real plus for private trackers. Not only do they have the luxury of picking and choosing new entrants, they also maintain the exclusivity that makes them so desirable to join in the first place. But just as new members trickle in, other things flood right out.

Thanks for the content, private trackers

For many years the so-called warez scene was the source of much of the content available online today. Things are changing in a very big way though and P2P distribution is now the uncrowned king.

Recently a flood of DVD screeners began to hit the Internet yet none of them came from a traditional ‘Scene’ source. In fact (and as far as the masses are concerned) most of them first appeared for the early enjoyment of the lucky individuals inhabiting private trackers. Eventually nearly all of them spread to public sites though. And users of those sites are grateful, even if they don’t mention it.

They should just get along

The ubiquitous nature of public sites has created a wealth of interest in file-sharing that private sites could never have managed on their own. Both have benefited as a result and it’s hard to escape that.

Also, most private torrent site users were doing their thing in public at one stage and when it comes to swelling their ranks, footfall to private sites is provided by the public. ‘Elite’ users don’t just appear out of thin air.

And, when Joe Public finds he can’t or refuses to keep up with the often stringent rules and requirements of private trackers, there needs to be a safety net or he could disappear from the P2P sharing scene entirely. Where does he go? Back to public torrent sites, of course.

Finally, for those who like to measure the quality of public and private sites by comparing YIFY rips with those more exclusively available – two words:

Gateway. Drug.

Excited new recruits coming up……and the secret love affair continues.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and ANONYMOUS VPN services.

Fifteen years ago, online peer-to-peer file-sharing was a fairly straightforward process. One simply downloaded a file-sharing client such as Kazaa, searched for whatever tickled one’s fancy, and waited for the file to transfer.

While it was undoubtedly easy, slick it was not. ‘Shared folder’ type applications like Kazaa and LimeWire were slow, clumsy and a haven for fake files and junk. No wonder people got excited when BitTorrent came along a few years later.

Today, people getting into the P2P file-sharing scene experience an altogether different dynamic. In some ways it’s more difficult to get going from a standing start, but for those prepared to handle an initially steep learning curve the rewards are potentially much greater.

However, with great ‘rewards’ come great responsibilities, especially when it comes to sharing copyrighted content without permission. As a result there are many misconceptions about what is and isn’t legal and how people are ‘caught’ (and by whom) when using tools such as BitTorrent online.

I never ‘seed’ so I’m never going to get caught

For the vast majority of users, seeding is the act of sharing content they have already downloaded. So, when a movie has downloaded and clicks from 99% to 100% complete, their BitTorrent software starts sharing that entire copy with the world.

However, many users believe that if they stop their software before it starts seeding, that means they cannot be tracked by anti-piracy companies. Unfortunately for them, that is completely untrue.

Any user in a BitTorrent ‘swarm’ has the potential to be tracked, often within seconds and certainly within minutes of beginning their download. This is because unless there are special circumstances, all users are also automatically sharing the content they’re downloading with others.

Once that user’s IP address has been logged by an anti-piracy company, few give a damn whether the user is sharing 100% or 0.1% of a movie. While the time spent in a swarm increases the chances of being monitored, for anti-piracy companies participation is guilt – period.

I own the original DVD/CD so I can download a copy completely legally

So you went into the city and picked up a copy of Mission Impossible – Rogue Nation and helped to push the movie to the top of the Blu-ray charts. Then, having enjoyed it so much, you bought the soundtrack on CD from Amazon. Pat yourself on the back – you’re a paid-up member of the legitimate purchase club.

With that accolade under your belt, it must then follow that you can download backup copies from BitTorrent in case of scratches etc, right?

Err, no. Absolutely not.

Buying an original copy of a movie or CD provides the purchaser with a license to use that content in a certain fashion, usually including viewing/listening at home in front of a limited number of people. What that license definitely does not provide is permission to mass distribute that content to anyone else.

As noted above in the ‘seeding myth’ section, anyone downloading content from BitTorrent is almost always distributing (or uploading) the same content to other users in the same swarm. The act of uploading is illegal in most countries.

Put plainly, anti-piracy companies couldn’t give a damn whether uploaders own none, one, or a million copies of the content in question. Unauthorized mass distribution is illegal, period.

How can I stop my ISP from spying on me?

During the past several years many hundreds of thousands of file-sharers have received letters or emails advising them that they’ve been monitored sharing copyrighted content without permission. As detailed above, many participated in BitTorrent swarms and had their IP addresses logged.

However, since the correspondence they initially receive usually comes from their Internet service provider (Comcast in the US, or Sky in the UK, for example), people believe that their ISP has been spying on them. That is simply not true.

In all ordinary circumstances, especially involving file-sharers, ISPs have no interest in monitoring their users. Not only would this present a legal minefield for service providers, doing so would also represent a logistical nightmare.

To be clear, anti-piracy companies monitor pirates and, broadly speaking, ISPs would rather not know what their users are doing. Some like to throttle (slow down) BitTorrent users but their interest generally ends there.

I only need to use a VPN to avoid being traced

There can be little doubt that buying a decent VPN from a reputable company is one of the best things anyone can do to protect their online privacy. However, people should be aware that this is only one aspect of remaining anonymous and it does not allow them to act with impunity.

Very often it is not merely how people connect to the Internet (unprotected IP address) that causes them to breach their security, but what they say and do once they’re online. For anyone interested in reading more about how poor Internet hygiene can drive a bus and several trucks through VPN security, please refer to our earlier article detailing how the UK’s most prolific pirates were caught.

In summary, VPNs are great (some might argue ‘essential’) for maintaining privacy online and their use alone will stop casual monitors from tracking the user. However, for those taking the bigger risks, VPNs and similar technology only help when sheer carelessness is taken out of the equation.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and ANONYMOUS VPN services.

Following a three year investigation by Hollywood-backed anti-piracy group the Federation Against Copyright Theft (FACT), in December five of the UK’s most prolific movie pirates were sentenced to more than 17 years.

The men, who were behind several interrelated movie release groups including RemixHD, 26K, UNiQUE, DTRG and HOPE/RESISTANCE, were tracked down with techniques detailed in our earlier article but when FACT and the police came knocking, what were they looking for?

TorrentFreak has obtained documents which reveal FACT’s “forensic strategy” in the case and details how the anti-piracy group sought to link the suspects with data gathered in the early stages of the operation.

A check-list shared with police underlined the need to corroborate existing intelligence and, if that was not possible, to determine whether suspects were involved in similar activities.

Find evidence of a conspiracy

As highlighted previously, FACT had long since abandoned attempting to prosecute defendants on copyright infringement grounds, largely since the maximum penalty in the UK for online offenses is ‘just’ two years. Working instead towards charges of Conspiracy to Defraud, officers were instructed to find evidence which would show that the defendants worked in concert (conspired) to defraud.

Since the case was about movies there is little surprise that evidence sought included information linking the defendants to the capturing or camming of movies or anything which indicated copyrighted video had been encoded.

The most obvious items to be searched for included the movies themselves but FACT and the police also searched for video encoding and conversion software plus anything that suggested the defendants were involved in counterfeit DVD production.

On the conspiracy side, it’s clear that securing evidence of communications was crucial. Those carrying out the raid were keen to secure not only emails, but Internet chat logs plus any other related documents such as spreadsheets.

Evidence of uploading infringing content to the Internet plus any discussion of doing so was desired. It was hoped that in part this could be achieved by finding logs from FTP software used to upload videos to servers operated by some members of the release groups.

Logs, logs, software – and more logs

While garage mechanics have their own unique tools to fix an engine or change some oil, Internet pirates’ tools largely exist in the digital domain. However, while the use of a wrench can be forgotten as soon as it’s been placed back in the box, pieces of software tend to have longer memories.

As a result, finding software on the machines of suspected pirates is a top priority since not only do these paint a picture of their owner, but they also carry detailed logs that can incriminate others.

On the machine of Sahil Rafiq police found lots of software designed to manipulate video and audio alongside ripping, encoding and torrent software. A copy of the DRM-busting software DVD Fab was also used in evidence.

At the time of the raid Rafiq’s machine was actually encoding a film but an inspection showed that the machine had been used for encoding before. Server logins, usernames and other passwords also provided useful pointers to previously monitored online behavior.

Also in apparent abundance were logs retained by chat software. The logs detailed links with groups releasing movies on the Internet and revealed discussions with Rafiq’s co-defendants alongside general comments indicating activity in the piracy business.

As is usually the case, FACT took an interest in Rafiq’s cellphone. According to evidence collated by the anti-piracy outfit, this device contained several messages from torrent sites which offered thanks for uploaded torrents.

Reece Baker’s machine had actually been wiped clean and a new operating system installed around two weeks before the raid. While that might have been a good start, when FACT arrived the machine was encoding the movie Gangster Squad which Baker had obtained from a Chinese torrent site.

The presence of the software VirtualDub was also viewed as a negative, as were logins which revealed Baker’s connection to the pirate group DEYA and a dozen uploads to ExtraTorrent.

In common with the others, Baker’s computer also carried lots of chat logs which detailed encoding and uploading of movies. Discussion surrounding the “de-dotting” of cams were seen as a negative as were incriminating comments made over Skype.

Baker’s phone was also seized – that contained a reminder for Rafiq’s birthday.

Like the others, Graeme Reid’s computer contained encoding and ripping software. It also had logins to a server used by the group and chat logs indicating that Reid was the leader of release group RemixHD and involved in another called UNiQUE.

A batch of emails showed how Reid had collaborated with others to source, encode and release movies. In total 1,725 torrent files were found plus DVD copying software.

Ben Cooper’s computer was also found to contain software for encoding and editing movies and carried chat logs confirming that he operated a server used to store films encoded by the groups.

With Scott Hemming it was a similar story. Evidence of encoding, incriminating chat logs with his co-defendants, and logins for a seedbox.

Conclusion

While FACT had built a pretty strong case against all of the defendants during its preliminary investigation, it’s very tempting to conclude that without the troves of information found on their computers, things would have turned out very differently indeed.

Quite how many of the 17 years sentenced could have been avoided will never be known, but it’s not beyond the realm of possibility that the case would have faltered before ever reaching a court room.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and ANONYMOUS VPN services.

How time flies. Just over a year ago The Pirate Bay was going through some of the most turbulent times in its entire history.

Following a raid at a Swedish datacenter the site stayed offline for several weeks, an event that fueled the rise of endless ‘replacement’ sites.

While many of the sites stepping up to fill the gap left by The Pirate Bay looked like the real deal, many were simply incomplete copies. To their credit, the operators of some of these sites were upfront about their status but others did everything they could to claim their place as the real Pirate Bay reincarnated.

Of course, when the real Pirate Bay returned at the end of January 2015, many of these other sites questioned their place in the market. Were they needed anymore? Were they even wanted? As time pressed on many simply dissolved but others carried on either as a clone, proxy or mirror.

While this kind of behavior had previously been encouraged by the operators of The Pirate Bay, it ended up causing huge confusion among casual users who had no idea which domains to trust. As previously highlighted, it contributed to a growing branding crisis among ‘pirate’ sites.

However, after returning to its full glory in February 2015, The Pirate Bay put faith in its trusted ThePirateBay.se domain and watched its users do the same. But by May the site was in trouble again when the Stockholm District Court ordered that domain to be seized, pending an appeal.

In response TPB moved to a ‘hydra’ of new domains including .GS, .LA, .VG, .AM, .MN and .GD TLDs but during the months that followed problems began to eat away at them. This week came the icing on the cake when the site’s registrar disabled a batch of active domains.

While it’s possible that the issues with these domains may be solved at some point in the future, The Pirate Bay needed to do something quickly to keep the show on the road. As a result the site is now mainly using its .SE and .ORG domains. The irony here is that these have worked all along and it was only the fear of losing them that prompted all the domain hopping in the first place.

So where is The Pirate Bay today and how does one identify it among all the clones, mirrors and proxies? Verified Pirate Bay domains that can be trusted to link to the real version of the site are shown below.

Most domains should already look familiar but for now it seems likely that of the standard domains ThePirateBay.SE will remain most stable and least likely to be taken down on short notice. ThePirateBay.org has had its own problems recently but they appear to be over, at least for now.

The TOR/Onion address uj3wazyk5u4hnvtk.onion should also be fine longer term but it’s hardly the most memorable set of digits for anyone to recall.

While still operational, ThePirateBay.LA currently seems most vulnerable after being given ‘clienthold‘ status earlier in the week.

In addition to those listed above the TPB crew have many other domains held in backup which could be introduced should any key domains experience further issues. Most do not currently link or divert to The Pirate Bay so there’s little point in listing them right now.

Overall it’s been a turbulent 12 months for The Pirate Bay and there’s little to suggest that 2016 will be any easier. While hosting has been surprisingly stable in recent times at a bare minimum one should expect more domain issues. But as history as shown us, other surprises could be just around the corner.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and ANONYMOUS VPN services.