Record-label hackers should wipe out the computers of people who swap MP3s. That's the nuclear option Utah senator Orrin Hatch recommends. Meanwhile, peer-to-peer special ops have already begun. The courts have been busy – and are likely to get busier – with Recording Industry Association of America lawsuits. The labels have also quietly contracted elite gray-hat hackers and small computer security companies to thwart music file-sharing. According to one self-described anti-pirate, "It's eye-for-an-eye time." Here are some of the anti-P2P programs and their industry codenames.
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Antinode Creates fake "supernodes," signposts used by some file-sharing technologies (Kazaa, for example) to guide users' computers to files. The pseudo-supernodes distribute misleading file information.
Fester Puts the word out on file-sharing networks that RIAA servers have music files for download. The servers redirect users to black hole sites, tying them up indefinitely. Newer P2P clients drop useless connections more quickly, so this approach may already be obsolete.
Freeze Uses an existing bug in P2P clients to remotely "hang" computers hunting for MP3s. The result could be more than mere frustration – unsaved data can be lost during a long hang. It's in development now.
Shame If implemented, would distribute a benign P2P virus in an illegal media file that adds the words "I steal music on the Internet" to a user's email signature. Expect to see that appear as a slogan on T-shirts a few minutes later.
Silence Scans computers on P2P networks for illegal material, hacks into the pirate machine, and deletes the data. One problem: Early versions delete legal MP3s, too.
Suck Scours the Net for large libraries of MP3s, and then starts asking for files. And asking. And asking. Eventually, the requests clog library owners' connections like hair in a pipe – and if the RIAA is using that bandwidth, then nobody else is. As a bonus, this approach generates huge volumes of data traffic, driving up pirates' usage and incurring the wrath of ISPs.
Tattle Recruits other industries. If you have lots of liberated music, chances are you also have a few pieces of software that fell off the back of a truck. Recording industry bots already track online piracy – insiders have suggested the RIAA share that information with the software and movie industries.
UNLEASH THE LAWYERS! Music labels have aggressively filed lawsuits in defense of copyright. The targets so far: File-trading companies The labels beat Napster in 1999. Other cases are on appeal. ISPs The RIAA forced Verizon to identify users trading files in 2002. Verizon appealed. Search engines Arista sued MP3Board.com in 2000; the case is pending. Users After settling with four students in 2003, the RIAA plans to sue more individuals.
– Andrew Zolli
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