Pirate Sites Exploit ‘Interplanetary File System’ Gateways, Publishers Warn
The InterPlanetary File System, more broadly known as IPFS, has been around for the past eight years. While the name may sound otherworldly to the public at large, the peer-to-peer file storage network has a growing user base among the tech-savvy. In short, IPFS is a decentralized network where users make files available to each other. The system makes websites censorship resistant and not vulnerable to regular hosting outages. These...
Advising Pirates to Use VPNs is “Positive News” Says Piracy Blocking Chief
When Italy passed new law on July 14, authorizing widespread internet blocking and harsher punishments for pirates who supply or even consume illegal streams, football clubs and broadcasters breathed a sigh of relief. Strong proponents of the law believe that Italy’s ‘Piracy Shield‘ blocking system will be a game changer when it arrives. Some appear completely convinced that almost no illegal content will be able to get through....
How An Undercover Lawyer Helped to Topple Denmark’s Torrent Tracker Scene
Last Thursday, a Danish court sentenced a 24-year old programmer from Silkeborg to 60 days probation for his role in operating the torrent tracker ShareUniversity. The sentencing is the latest in Denmark following an unprecedented crackdown on local torrent trackers that has already resulted in more than a dozen prosecutions, with more yet to come. The National Unit for Special Crime (NSK) reports that it’s happy with the conviction....
Pirate IPTV Owners Sentenced to 36 Months in Prison & $18m Damages
The theory that “nobody likes a snitch” depends heavily on individual circumstances, motivation, and who stands to benefit. Whistleblowers, on the other hand, are often portrayed in more sympathetic light. What prompted an anonymous tip to anti-piracy group Nordic Content Protection (NCP) in 2019 isn’t clear. But for NCP members including pay-TV company C More (previously Canal+), Warner Bros. Discovery and streaming service Viaplay,...
Hollywood and Netflix Flag ‘Priority’ Piracy Threats
Over the past two decades, online piracy has proven a massive challenge for the entertainment industries. It’s a global issue that’s hard to contain, but various anti-piracy group are doing their best to fight back. There’s a seemingly perpetual stream of takedowns, as evidenced by press releases that come out every week. However, some targets are particularly resistant to enforcement action and much harder to take offline. A few days...
Anti-Piracy Agency Credited With BitTorrent Victory, IPTV & Streaming Take on Both
With millions of monthly users, BitTorrent’s reign at the top of the file-sharing seemed unstoppable in 2007, but the French government had other plans. Presented to the Senate in June 2008, what would later become France’s Hadopi law envisioned a crackdown on peer-to-peer file-sharing via a ‘graduated response’ mechanism, with around eight million local BitTorrent users the primary targets. The Hadopi agency created to administer the...
