Why? Carl ----- Original Message ----- From: "Miroslav Antic" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "Hydro" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Saturday, December 15, 2001 6:25 PM Subject: [Hydro] FBI cracks down on piracy
> FBI cracks down on piracy > > http://gamespot.com/gamespot/stories/news/0,10870,2832452,00.html > > The federal government concludes a yearlong investigation into software > piracy by raiding university campuses and businesses in 27 cities this > week. > > Federal officials said new raids targeting Internet "warez" groups are > in the works following the largest US crackdown on Internet piracy in > history this week, including potential strikes outside the country. > "This is only the first step," said Kevin Bell, spokesman for the > nation's customs agency. "The investigation is ongoing." > > The US Customs Service, along with the US Department of Justice, on > Tuesday raided universities and high-tech businesses in 27 cities as > part of an international crackdown on underground groups that actively > trade in illicit copies of software and digital media. Dubbed "Operation > Buccaneer," the enforcement action occurred simultaneously in four other > countries, where an additional 22 search warrants were issued, resulting > in the arrests of nine people. None of the suspects in the United States > have been arrested at this point. > > "This investigation underscores the severity and scope of a > multibillion-dollar software swindle over the Internet, as well as the > vulnerabilities of this technology to outside attack," Customs > Commissioner Robert Bonner said in a statement. > > In the first overt action of a 15-month investigation of such organized > groups of pirates, the Customs Service targeted the oldest and largest > group, known as DrinkOrDie. > > "We are targeting these groups that do it all the time," Bell said. "If > you are at your house one night and you want to get a free copy of some > software, that's not what we are talking about." > > Customs agents seized 129 computers in the 38 searches nationwide, Bell > said. Among the data captured were Web sites with so much pirated media > that it took 4,000 pages to list the titles. Another seized system had > more than 5,000 movies, including the blockbuster Harry Potter and the > Sorcerer's Stone. > > "The data was available to millions of people all over the world," said > Bell, who added that another 15 countries may take part in the action. > > Members of the DrinkOrDie group included corporate executives, computer > network administrators, and students at major US universities who > regularly uploaded copy-protected software and digital media to be > broken by other members of the group. There are perhaps as many as 10 > major warez communities such as DrinkOrDie. And they don't do it for > profit, Bell said. "They believe in a free Internet," he said. "They > don't want any rules or any laws that inhibit what they do." > > Warez describes software and digital material that has been stripped of > anti-copying protections and made available on the Internet for > downloading. Because the amount of data and evidence that the Customs > Service must sort through is so large, Bell said he expected arrest > warrants for subjects in the case would take two to three months to > obtain. > > At least one computer security expert criticized the government's > crackdown, saying it focuses on the wrong people. "There are two kinds > of people pirating software: the kids, and the people who are stamping > out 5,000 copies in Taiwan and selling them for $5 a pop," said Bruce > Schneier, a well-known encryption expert and president of Counterpane > Internet Security, a network protection company. > > The warez groups are typically students and computer aficionados having > fun and testing themselves by breaking programs--generally on a power > trip, Schneier said. "Throwing the book at these guys is the wrong thing > to do," he added. > > The Customs Service, however, maintains that the problem is more > serious. Responsible adults are said to be involved, not just students. > And the techniques that the loose-knit community uses to ensure their > security are advanced, Bell said. "They communicate over really secure > IRC channels; they have rules, certain ways that people can become > members," he said. "They are competing against each other to see how > fast they can copy a piece of software and get it up on their site." > > The Business Software Alliance (BSA), which represents the software > industry's interests in Washington, DC, agrees that warez sites are as > big a threat as "true" pirates. "You could have a good debate over who > is hurting the industry more," said Bob Kruger, vice president of > enforcement for the BSA, which has estimated that the software companies > lost $2.6 billion in 2000 to US-based piracy. Although downloading > programs from the Internet doesn't necessarily have a one-to-one > correlation to lost sales, Kruger maintains that there is definitely > harm suffered by the industry. > > "Whether it's 10, 20, or 50 percent, it is part of the marketplace," he > said. "We worry a lot about the destruction of the marketplace on the > Internet." > > By Rob Lemos, News.com [POSTED: 12/13/01] > > THE END > > > THE END ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [email protected] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?bUrHhl.bVKZIr Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
