Economist.com | Illegal file-sharers under attack

Grok Headline matches for Economist.com | Illegal file-sharers under attack

Battle Not Over for File Sharers

Battle Not Over for File Sharers 12/23/2003 07:15 AM
The recent ruling preventing the Recording Industry of America from using ISPs to go after copyright offenders opens new legal avenues to those who have been sued. But beating the RIAA won't be easy. By Kristen Philipkoski.

Winning over the file sharers

Winning over the file sharers 04/06/2005 06:23 PM
ZDNet Apr 6 2005 9:08PM GMT

RIAA goes after 531 more file sharers

RIAA goes after 531 more file sharers 02/18/2004 10:49 AM
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is continuing its tactic of filing suits against anonymous "John Doe" computer users who the organization accuses of illegally sharing copyright material over peer to peer networks. The association filed lawsuits against 531 unnamed people on Tuesday, claiming that they are offering substantial amounts of copyrighted music files for free. The legal actions were filed in Philadelphia, Atlanta, Orlando and Trenton, New Jersey, the RIAA said.

Artists mix it up with file sharers
(USATODAY.com)

Artists mix it up with file sharers
(USATODAY.com) 05/21/2004 05:16 PM
USATODAY.com - A sampling of creative ways entertainers have approached the file-sharing question:

File-sharers offer SP2 update

File-sharers offer SP2 update 08/14/2004 01:05 AM
News.bbc.co.uk - Fri Aug 13, 02:27 pm GMT

Lawsuits deter some file-sharers

Lawsuits deter some file-sharers 04/26/2004 08:45 AM
The lawsuits against file-sharers is having a mixed impact on song-swapping online, a survey has found.

Internet2 File Sharers Targeted

Internet2 File Sharers Targeted 04/14/2005 07:06 AM
Media Center PC World Apr 14 2005 12:02PM GMT

Valenti Angry With Tarantino, Wants To
Sue File Sharers

Valenti Angry With Tarantino, Wants To
Sue File Sharers 05/17/2004 04:21 PM
How about a celebrity boxing match between Quentin Tarantino and Jack Valenti? Last week Tarantino spoke at an "anti-piracy" conference and made the case that movie piracy isn't so bad in many cases. However, by not sticking to the script, Tarantino has apparently upset MPAA head Jack Valenti. It's a little unclear what was said, but from the article linked here, it sounds like Valenti was threatening Tarantino. He tells him that it's time to "get on-board" with the industry's anti-piracy efforts. However, there doesn't appear to be an "or else," which certainly makes it sound like quite the idle threat. However, he's also threatening file sharers, and is basically admitting that the MPAA is likely to follow in the RIAA's footsteps and start directly suing end users. Valenti warns: "Suppose you can [download] a movie in five minutes, piracy will explode like a pandemic." Mr. Valenti's track record in such predictions isn't so hot. After all, he's the guy who predicted the VCR would kill the movie industry just before it (oh, that's right) saved the industry.

Apple sues 'Tiger' file sharers

Apple sues 'Tiger' file sharers 12/24/2004 12:39 PM
Apple is suing three men it says shared preview versions of its latest operating system online.

Music industry sues file-sharers

Music industry sues file-sharers 01/22/2004 03:10 AM
The US music industry starts legal action against more than 500 users accused of sharing songs online.

RIAA Targets Internet2 File Sharers

RIAA Targets Internet2 File Sharers 04/14/2005 07:06 AM
Boost Marketing Apr 14 2005 11:59AM GMT

RIAA sues 80 more alleged file-sharers

RIAA sues 80 more alleged file-sharers 10/31/2003 06:21 PM
USA Today Oct 31 2003 4:48PM ET

British ISPs Must Identify File Sharers

British ISPs Must Identify File Sharers 03/14/2005 04:42 PM
British record companies applauded Friday's ruling in court that gave them the right to obtain the identities of people who use file sharing programs from Internet service providers. The labels were looking for the identities of 31 persons suspected of uploading large numbers of illegal files.

Supposedly Anonymous File Sharers
Arrested

Supposedly Anonymous File Sharers
Arrested 12/02/2003 03:09 AM
Ever since the recording industry started cracking down on file sharers by going after them with lawyers, new services have been popping up promising "anonymity" for anyone who uses them. Of course, most don't give much proof for that claim, and you might want to think twice before believing it. Two file sharers in Japan have apparently been arrested, despite using a supposedly anonymous service. They don't say how they tracked these folks down, but it's making people wonder just how anonymous these anonymous systems really are.

RIAA once again can easily get file
sharers identity

RIAA once again can easily get file
sharers identity 07/28/2004 02:54 AM

Well in another win for enemy number one in the file sharing the RIAA can now get the identities of file sharers in mass. This will help them expedite their lawsuits against thousands of file sharers [Corante]

File-sharers offer Windows update

File-sharers offer Windows update 08/10/2004 06:56 AM
File-sharing activists are using Microsoft's SP2 update to highlight the benefits of peer-to-peer technology.

Record Industry Sues 531 More
File-Sharers

Record Industry Sues 531 More
File-Sharers 02/17/2004 03:41 PM
The U.S. music industry today said it sued 531 more people for online copyright infringement.

RIAA sues 482 more unnamed file-sharers

RIAA sues 482 more unnamed file-sharers 06/23/2004 07:35 AM
The Register Jun 23 2004 11:39AM GMT

US federal agents raid file-sharers

US federal agents raid file-sharers 06/05/2005 11:48 PM

United States law enforcement agents raided a series of servers allegedly hosting file-sharing servers. Operation D-Elite targeted sites supporting files using the BitTorrent protocol, focusing especially on the EliteTtorrents site. "Torrents" make files available in many small sections, which increases uploading and downloading speeds.

The action follows a well-publicized complaint by the Motion Picture Association of America ( MPAA ), who criticized the wide availability of torrent versions of the new Star Wars movie.

The Justice Department wouldn't comment on how officials zeroed in on Elitetorrent's biggest players, but ICE's Sevel credited the MPAA, which somehow got a line on the site's server logs.
"The MPAA provided us with information that led us to the logs and data for the servers ... the logs for the users as well as the uploads and downloads," said [ICE supervisory agent Jim] Sevel. The organization did not just provide a list of IP addresses of file swappers -- which is easy to get on any peer-to-peer network -- but found some of "the actual records from the server," Sevel said.

The raids were carried out by several agencies acting in concert, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the FBI , organized by Homeland Security .

(via Louise Watson )

Programmer Sets Up Mask for File-Sharers
(AP)

Programmer Sets Up Mask for File-Sharers
(AP) 02/11/2004 01:22 AM
AP - Wyatt Wasicek was so outraged by the recording industry's legal assault on users of free music-downloading sites that he decided to ride to the rescue. He created a program called AnonX that masks the Internet address of people who use file-sharing programs such as Kazaa.

RIAA targets 493 more unnamed
file-sharers

RIAA targets 493 more unnamed
file-sharers 05/25/2004 11:50 AM
And 24 named alleged copyright infringers

Programmer sets up mask for file-sharers

Programmer sets up mask for file-sharers 02/11/2004 02:43 AM
Boston Globe Feb 11 2004 6:46AM GMT

Final countdown begins for file-sharers

Final countdown begins for file-sharers 11/07/2003 05:27 AM

Music boss can't wait to sue British
file sharers

Music boss can't wait to sue British
file sharers 09/23/2004 06:33 AM
The thoughts of Chairman John

New Service Designed To Hide IP
Addresses Of File Sharers

New Service Designed To Hide IP
Addresses Of File Sharers 02/11/2004 02:36 AM
It should be no surprise to anyone that people who are still using file sharing programs are going further underground to avoid being threatened by the RIAA. Now, someone who is fed up with the RIAA's tactics has started a VPN service, called AnonX, to hide the IP addresses of people using file sharing systems. Instead, all requests are routed through the company's (offshore) servers. He's charging $6/month for the service, and claims that he can't be forced to divulge info on subscribers, since the company is actually based in Vanuatu, the same place Kazaa is based. Chances are he's going to get sued anyway.

Hollywood Creates Software For Automatic
Booting Of File Sharers

Hollywood Creates Software For Automatic
Booting Of File Sharers 04/19/2004 01:38 PM
The folks in Hollywood are getting a bit more technical. Realizing that it was taking some ISPs and university network administrators some time to respond to their DMCA takedown notices when accusing file sharers or illegal activity, Universal has written up some open source software that they're pushing on universities and ISPs that would help automate the process of kicking them off the network. The idea is that the studios could send out a notification, that would automatically go into the system, send off an alert email to the user, and then shut off their account until the "offending material" was removed. Leaving aside the irony of Hollywood offering free open source software (this is the same industry that is still telling people "if it's free, you stole it"), it also seems to go a step beyond what most people consider due process in making sure that those kicked off from the network actually did something wrong.

Noose tightens round necks of
file-sharers worldwide

Noose tightens round necks of
file-sharers worldwide 03/25/2005 11:42 PM

Canadian Court Says File Sharers Not
Guilty of Copyright Infringement

Canadian Court Says File Sharers Not
Guilty of Copyright Infringement 04/09/2004 04:06 PM
"In other words, just putting files in a computer directory that other people can access is insufficient an action to constitute illegal distribution - at least under Canadian law."

Music Industry Sues Hundreds Of File
Sharers At Colleges (washingtonpost.com)

Music Industry Sues Hundreds Of File
Sharers At Colleges (washingtonpost.com) 04/13/2005 01:48 AM
washingtonpost.com - The entertainment industry's effort to sue music and movie pirates into submission is reaching into the Internet's next generation with the filing of several hundred lawsuits yesterday against college students using a faster version of the Web called Internet2.

Recording industry drops amnesty program
for online file-sharers

Recording industry drops amnesty program
for online file-sharers 04/20/2004 04:46 PM
SiliconValley.com Apr 20 2004 7:42PM GMT

Angry with RIAA tactics, programmer
creates mask for file-sharers

Angry with RIAA tactics, programmer
creates mask for file-sharers 02/11/2004 10:48 AM
SiliconValley.com Feb 11 2004 2:34PM GMT

"By the year 2010, file-sharers could be
swapping news rather than music,
eliminating censorship of any kind"

"By the year 2010, file-sharers could be
swapping news rather than music,
eliminating censorship of any kind" 04/10/2004 09:49 PM

Record industry suffers setback in court
Internet providers can't be forced to
divulge file-sharers

Record industry suffers setback in court
Internet providers can't be forced to
divulge file-sharers 12/20/2003 06:17 AM
San Francisco Chronicle Dec 20 2003 5:39AM ET

FBI action over illegal file-swap

FBI action over illegal file-swap 08/27/2004 01:26 PM
The FBI has seized equipment as part of the first copyright action taken against file-sharing networks.

New Network Tool Tries To Block Illegal
File Sharing

New Network Tool Tries To Block Illegal
File Sharing 04/21/2004 12:54 PM
Palisade Systems appears to be the first network monitoring company to license Audible Magic's technology for identifying song files, and claims that their new tool can stop illegal song file transfers in their tracks. There are a few other companies out there like Palisade, and I imagine they're all working on something similar. Announcements like this make the RIAA happy, but are unlikely to do very much. As the article points out, the technology doesn't work on encrypted systems - which is where file sharing programs are rapidly headed. Also, the company still hasn't demonstrated how well the technology works. It's likely that active file sharers will figure out ways around it within a day, making the technology somewhat worthless in the long run. Meanwhile, people who will get stopped are those who aren't necessarily trying to do anything illegal, but are just doing things like emailing themselves a song, so they can shift it from one computer to another. Once again, the industry will end up pushing file sharers further underground, but it's unlikely this will do much to slow down file sharing.

Illegal file sharing on the rise,
despite legal threats

Illegal file sharing on the rise,
despite legal threats 01/16/2004 01:00 PM
A more recent study argues that, far from being in retreat, file sharing is on the rise again.

HP makes bold attack on consumers file
sharing

HP makes bold attack on consumers file
sharing 01/10/2004 03:49 AM
Seems HP's CEO doesn't like the fact that people are using their and other companies products to share files online...

Illegal immigrants, illegal aliens and
the undocumented

Illegal immigrants, illegal aliens and
the undocumented 01/24/2004 07:13 PM
It's only used by frothing-at-the-mouth xenophobes. Not that there's a shortage of them. Google yields 242,000 Web sites where "illegal aliens" appears. ...

Some indie artists at odds with
industry's attack on file sharing

Some indie artists at odds with
industry's attack on file sharing 03/25/2005 01:20 AM
San Jose Mercury News Mar 25 2005 4:39AM GMT
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Economist.com | Illegal file-sharers under attack

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