MPAA Caught Uploading Fake Torrents
It is no secret that the MPAA and other anti-piracy organizations track down alleged pirates by uploading fake torrents. Up until now it was always unclear where those files came from, and how to identify them.
The MPAA and other anti-piracy watchdogs try to trap people into downloading fake torrents, so they can collect IP addresses, and send copyright infringement letters to ISPs. They hire a company to put up fake copies of popular movies, music albums, and TV series. They even use pirate like filenames such as “Battlestar Galactica S03E07 REPACK DSR XviD-ORENJi” and “Miami Vice[2006]DvDrip[Eng]-aXXo“.
One of the btjunkie admins has found a unique way to identify trackers that host these fake files, which makes it easy to efficiently remove them.
Virtually all the servers that spread these fake files are located in Southern California and Las Vegas. The administrators of these servers follow patterns that make it easy to identify them. The content of the trackers and seed amounts make them stand out. There are more unique characteristics, but we wont reveal all the tricks because they could take counter measures. Here are some examples of servers that host and track fake torrents:
Tracker 1, Tracker 2, Tracker 3 & Tracker 4. (Screenshots: One & Two)
All the information was provided to me by one of the admins of btjunkie, who works together on this with other torrent site admins. He says that the MPAA and friends use a variety of tactics. The tracker will either stall everyone at around 90% or the content will just be a blank monochrome screen.
“I really think this is being done by professionals with a budget, that’s a lot of servers to setup and it takes some expertise to setup in the manner that they did it,” says the btjunkie admin. “I don’t think I really need to say who would spend money on something like this.”
Here are some good examples of how these fake torrents clutter up the search results. Virtually all of those X marked torrents are coming from the ip-ranges we mentioned, and are fake files. The good thing is that Torrentportal’s report system is well used by their users.
The server boxes that host these torrents fall in serveral ip-ranges. Here are a few of the ranges that were discovered recently. You can easily add these to the blocklist of your torrent client (if it supports one), filewall, or blocklist manager.
The anti-piracy servers use hostnames like 101tracker.dhcp.biz, aplustorrents.qhigh.com, bitnova.squirly.info, bittorment.ocry.com, and pirate-trakkrz.leet.la. All these hostnames can be traced back to the same IP Ranges, these ranges contain possibly hundreds of fake trackers, so feel free to block them:
A list of infohashes of fake torrents can be found over here.
Note that it’s not only MPAA material that is hosted on these fake trackers. It is more likely that the servers are owned and operated by an organization that logs IP addresses for several copyright owners and or anti-piracy organizations.
Update: according to one of out readers these ip-ranges belong to “Media Defender“, a company that is hired by copyright owners, to log IP-addresses. This reader, who worked for Media Defender until recently, confirmed that some of the torrents that were mentioned, are indeed on the MPAA’s list.
Previously: The Pirate Bay: Sponsored by Wal-Mart
Next: The Pirate Bay Wants to Buy Sealand
201 Responses (Add yours or TrackBack)
Pages: « 1 2 3 4 [5] 6 7 8 9 » Show All
Interesting this with MPAA & Anti Piracy orgs. tracking the IP-number. So what are they gonna do with it?
For sure that will Not stand in Swedish court of law. Furthermore, an ISP in Sweden can only give out an individuals name and adress to the Police (after a court order) and only if the crime comitted can be sentenced to two years’ imprisonment at minimum. And we don’t have that hard punishement in Sweden for downloading a copyrighted movie or a game etc. for a non profit, privat entertainment. It is a whole different case if one does it in a large scale, making a lot of money out of it. But still No crazy decade imprisonment…
But it is of cource annoying with the fake uploads.
Sorry for my poor english and grammar.
/Best Regards
Well, I am no either from those countries, it was interesting how this turned up. I just finishes my studies in finance and economics, please let me say that ‘piracy’ (how the call it) has helped to balance economies, at least in third world markets. When internet appeared for mass-use it was surprising for me at least that the same movie (and with better quality if I may add) It was sold for a lot less in US, UK or Canada than in my country this so-called piracy has forced the industry to lower their prices because the profit margins where offensive to the end-up consumer and also their forced to offer quality movies. Besides this I’m die-hard cinephile who’s planning in the near future to study filmmaking and this rip release has helped me first to acquire a wide vast criteria of the movie industry plus it helps me to spend my money more wisely. Because let’s face it we’re up against a mass-media control phenomena, aimed in most case to mark tendencies for consuming products, to desire a specific type of women (causing women to die, like the models in Brazil due to anorexia) and even to disseminate certain convenient foreign policies. So you can admit you downloaded movies, deleted them and then went out to buy it confident that what you buy is really what you like, and not to be entrapped by a movie wich its main goal was to be able to gather money for the new house or anything else for the actors and producers because that work didn’t come from a true and honest intention to contribute to Art.
PS: Pardon my english if I wasn’t clear enough.
We are bunch of cock smokers and want lots of money to purchase trans sexuals for medical experiments. We make heaps of money anyway but want more for more shitty over priced crap.
Buy teh movie of we will cry lots. Mum said she will spank you!!!
[quote comment="38156"]Wouldn’t offering fake files be a form of entrapment? After all they are the ones making the files available online. If the files were not there, then copyright infringement would not take place.
“If the officer mentions money first…”[/quote]
No, they need to trick or coerce you into it for it to be entrapment. Otherwise you could never have Drug or Vice sting operations which I am sure you know are legal.
[quote comment="38154"]
What all these ‘real world’ examples of conviction based on intent have in common that is arguably not there in the case of torrenting, is that there is an instance where law enforcement creates an explicit moment of intent… for instance, a police woman posing as a hooker must get verbal confirmation that the person is willing to exchange sex for money. Without the explicit intent expressed by the individual, there is no ‘intent’. This type of interaction doesn’t happen in the process of file sharing ’stings’ - If one went to download one of these fake torrents and was accused of attempting to illegally access copy-written material, the accuser has no ‘real’ knowledge that you thought it was copy-written material because there was no explicit expression of intent… Are you attempting to download the Warner brother movie, “Happy Feet” without payment?… No, I’m trying to download a fake file with a similar name that I can use to learn about an interesting facet of the interweb culture!… hmm.[/quote]
No, then that would be like someone buying a white substance from a cop and then claiming that he realy wanted baby powder they got. People have tried that defense - they get laughed out of court. It doesn’t work that way, common sense dictates that if you use a p2p network and you try to download something with the title of a copyrighted movie, song or whatever, then you are trying to get that copyrighted material not some fake file.
RIAA, MPAA… all these “Companies” are fucked up criminals paying corrupt cocaine sniffing lawyers & politicians to take control over planet earth. We have chance to say no to all that shit. We must say no and get organised to have strong power against the criminals!
Thoughts. If a show (copyright material)is broadcast on national tv and I record it on tape to watch at a more convenient time, am I showing intent to breach copyright? Or does this only take place if I pass on the tape to someone? Does simply OWNING a video recorder show intent to piracy? If any of these are true there are an awful lot of pirates around - rich pickings for the MPAA etc(!) I have downloaded episodes of US series simply because UK are always behind on airdates (I’ll watch them again when they finally do make it over here), it’s just more convenient. Finally there could be a plus side for copyright owners anyway, much of the material I’ve downloaded I have subsequently purchased so look on it as an advertising/promotion service!
ur all ghey
stop bitchin
ur all thieven kunts
fuck the hollywood bitches
they won’t win
thieven forever
p.
Fuck the Police
The MPAA could not ever do anyone for intent to infringe copyright. Why? Because of something called “Specific Intent”.
See, some crimes are covered by Specific Intent, in other words merely intending to commit the crime is a crime in itself. Murder is a good example here - an attempted murder isn’t a murder but the INTENT to commit murder makes it a crime.
The day that copyright infringement becomes a specific intent crime is the day I execute my leaders.
Registrant:
MediaDefender
11965 Venice
Venice CA 90066
US
310-306-9110
Domain Name: MEDIADEFENDER.COM
Administrative Contact:
Saaf Randy info@mediadefender.com
11965 Venice
Venice CA 90066
US
310-306-9110
Technical Contact:
Saaf Randy info@mediadefender.com
11965 Venice
Venice CA 90066
US
310-306-9110
Record last updated 12-11-2003 07: 45: 20 PM
Record expires on 07-13-2011
Record created on 07-13-2000
Domain servers in listed order:
MPAA and the rest… Welcome to my world. they think its ok scaring people with viruses, and some actually put viruses in them . FUCK NO not while im alive. this is war, and im starting it if no one else does. sure it may be illegal to some degree what is going on with torrents, but what they are doing is messing up peoples computers, and casuing much more major damage in data. FUCK NO . MARK MY wORDS. “i DECLARE A WAR” it starts now
i hope the pirates win and actors only get £200 a week like every one else
I don’t believe any judge has ordered a defendant to hand over his/her hard drive. The act of inspecting the hard drive is a voluntary measure by innocent defendants. Besides, I’d be in my car driving to Best Buy with cash in hand to buy a fresh new disk within five minutes of receiving notice from my ISP… wouldn’t do them much good in that case. lol
I’m sure it would be quite easy to knock these IPs offline with a DDoS if the pirates really wanted to. I don’t see why the MPAA are trying so hard, it’s a position from which they cannot win.
So I suspect that if you downloaded a planted movie, if you buy oregano and thought it was pot, you’ll still be arrested for attempted whatever the charge is…
i saw this a mile above and laughed, just had to comment, because a 6 yr old girl was charged with possesion when she brought a bag of oregano to school and was playing around with friends…. the charges were eventually dropped but they were made in the first place…. it was in the states somewhere ill have to look it up….
fucke ‘em
he whole thing is entrapment and is legal- if he MPAA fake a file and put it forwarded as copyrighted- they are BREAKING the law too and it would be thrown out of court if they tried to prosecute themselves the downloader. All they can do is worry ISP’s and get you banned!
Regarding Paedophiles different kettle of fish entirely since they are sexual predators of minors and even if entrapped by an adult posing as a child their dialoque or chatroom replies would prove their intent to do/guilt had it been so, despite no minor being present. Still entrapment though! With films if you know it is fake you just do not carry on to download, so MPAA is actively encouraging you to commit a crime by lying to you just as if you know the film is genuine! Touche!
8 references to this post
Pages: « 1 2 3 4 [5] 6 7 8 9 » Show All
Add your response