cybercrime-alerts
Sun, 14 Jan 2001 06:24:05 -0800
* subscribe at http://techPolice.com Trading Child Porn on Napster By Jack Karp - techtv.com Criminal investigators in Germany are looking into the possibility that online file-swapping services such as Napster, Gnutella, and MyNapster are making it easier for pedophiles to trade child pornography over the Internet. The investigation surfaced January 9 when the online German publication Computer Channel reported the allegations. The magazine claims that research by its editorial staff turned up "files with a pornographical file name that are offered through firms like MyNapster or Gnutella" and that these files are readily available for download from the music exchange sites. Napster, meanwhile, has installed a system that filters out pornographic files, according to the magazine. However, pedophiles are circumventing the filter system by disguising their images and videos as MP3 files. "That means that picture and video files (including child pornography or pornographical material) can still be offered, swapped, or downloaded," the magazine reported. "You only have to change the file name into the real format, and then you can look at the files." Fritz Dillinger, a spokesman for the Bavarian State Criminal Office, confirmed the report, telling IDG News, "We are conducting inquiries in connection with that." When contacted by CyberCrime, Napster claimed in a written statement, "The Napster service is designed to enable the sharing of music in the form of mp3 or WMA files, all of which are stored on the computers of individual users. Any exchange of image or film files would violate Napster's terms of service." "Under Napster's terms of service, users are responsible for complying with all federal and state laws applicable to shared content," the statement continued. "User accounts that violate those terms will be blocked from the service as soon as Napster learns of such violations. Napster has cooperated and will continue to cooperate with law enforcement investigations related to allegations regarding use of the Napster service for criminal activity." Gnutella, which according to the Computer Channel report does not filter pornographic films and images, could not be reached for comment. http://www.techtv.com/cybercrime/viceonline/story/0,23008,3305501,00.html --- Sponsor's Message -------------------------------------- What's the Dirt? Want to know what's up in Tinseltown? Get all the gossip! http://click.topica.com/aaaa4yb1dhr0b1uN1Ic/hollywood ------------------------------------------------------------ --via http://techPolice.com archive: http://theMezz.com/cybercrime/archive unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] url: http://theMezz.com/alerts ____________________________________________________________ T O P I C A -- Learn More. Surf Less. Newsletters, Tips and Discussions on Topics You Choose. http://www.topica.com/partner/tag01