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story category MPAA: Dummy Websites Used
That pretend to offer pirated content...
(old news - 08:54AM Thursday Jul 05 2007)
tags: legal · Video · business · content
ZeroPaid this week discovered that a company employed by the MPAA (Media Defender) has been using a dummy website to trick users into downloading what appeared to be pirated films, but instead was a software application that scanned a user's PC and reported back any pirated content to the MPAA. Shortly after ZeroPaid discovered the website was registered to Media Defender, "MiiVi" went dead.

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Forums » MPAA: Dummy Websites Used
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MoeDumb
"America Si, Obama No."
Premium
join:2002-09-23
Bronx, NY

Savages!

Kudos to ZeroPaid.
TurtleFan

join:2003-05-03
Wyckoff, NJ

Re: Savages!

That sounds just as bad as people stealing movies. Why steal movies when it's oh so easy to tape them via a tuner card and set top box?
battleop

join:2005-09-28
00000

Uh wait a minute. If they own the rights to the film and they put it on a website to download how is that an illegal download?

If you say well the movie company didn't do it then why are they not going after media defender for sharing said movie?


Anomus

@rr.com

Re: Savages!

They are not claiming people download anything illegal from that site, and I am sure what they claim to offer is not even legit. But they are running a sneaky progie to see what contraban people do have on their pc. If they find stuff, they can copy all your personal info and documents so you are positively identified for later use in court. Very sneaky trick and much more damning without the hassle of isp supenas and such. I am sure there are lots of people that fall for it just like there are people that pay those croked sites $9.95 a month to use Kazaa and Emule.
rahvin112

join:2002-05-24
Sandy, UT

Re: Savages!

It's also called computer crime. They give prison terms for this type of behavior.

tc1uscg

join:2005-03-09
Saint Clair Shores, MI
·Comcast
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Re: Savages!

said by rahvin112 See Profile :

It's also called computer crime. They give prison terms for this type of behavior.
Where have you been? Didn't Congress give the RIAA the "OK" to "break into" PC's who they "thought" were stilling music? I remember reading where people had a "black box" on their cable line to keep their cable box in "test mode" (blocking the code cable companies send to scramble the box). However, unsuspecting customers returned boxes thinking they were broke when Motorola send a silver bullet down the line to lock up the boxes. Then, with the boxes in hand.. turned it over to a 3rd party to bilk money out of the customer.. As with the RIAA, most claims were settled for 4k (some more). Think the paper said hundreds (in the Detroit metro area) were busted for "stealing" cable. Guess if it has the FCC or Congress's blessing.. it's ok..

Sterling
IP Support Tier III
Premium
join:2003-05-30
Pittsburgh, PA

what the are doing is probably border line computer crimes, because I'm certain the feds would would be draggin any of us to prison if we were to install a program that scans and downloads parts of files that may contain infomation mention yourself in it.
but then again we don;t have a billion dollars to purchase exemptions

Cabal
Premium
join:2007-01-21
02101

Since I know *someone* will make the mistake...

No, it's not entrapment. Neither the MPAA nor Media Defender are law enforcement agencies.

It definitely made me smile, though.
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TheWickerMan

join:2002-04-09
Enola, PA

Re: Since I know *someone* will make the mistake...

said by Cabal See Profile :

Neither the MPAA nor Media Defender are law enforcement agencies.
They seem to think they are.
jc1350

join:2004-09-23
It may not be entrapment, but it should be illegal under the various computer abuse/fraud laws since they are literally spreading a trojan horse and misrepresenting the code they are offering.

Maxo
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Re: Since I know *someone* will make the mistake...

said by jc1350 See Profile :

It may not be entrapment, but it should be illegal under the various computer abuse/fraud laws since they are literally spreading a trojan horse and misrepresenting the code they are offering.
I concur. This is spyware at it's worst. I would be interested to get ahold of the program they offered and run it in a VM to see if there's anything in the EULA that explains itself.
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BF69

join:2004-07-28
Camden, TN

said by jc1350 See Profile :

It may not be entrapment, but it should be illegal under the various computer abuse/fraud laws since they are literally spreading a trojan horse and misrepresenting the code they are offering.
Kind of like the cocaine user that calls the cops after he's sold baking soda. This is your argument? "How dare they do illegal things trying to get me to stop doing illegal things myself!!!!"

Hard to feel sorry for the suckers that downloaded the spyware crap. They were trying to obtain movies ilegally which makes them more expensive for me, a law a biding citizen, so screw them.

Maddogmike
Premium
join:2007-06-21
Cleveland, OH
·RoadRunner Cable

Re: Since I know *someone* will make the mistake...

Well, i agree with your point, but i also agree with said downloader, corporations continue to get away with these things, when do they ever get into trouble when they themselves do illegal things. It's always gonna be this way.
boober321

join:2003-07-15
Milwaukee, WI
·ViaTalk
·Earthlink Cable Mo..

Gotta love the idiots that believe anything from the RIAA or MPAA would be cheaper "if only the pirates wouldn't steal..."
People can be so stupid. By the way BF69, how did you feel about the Sony rootkit, or all the price fixing that the BMG, Sony and alike were guilty of, not to mention the price gouging they commit every day, or their strong arm tactics against anyone not willing to bow to their ever whim...?

Mactron
el Camino Real
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CM94sv

said by Cabal See Profile :

No, it's not entrapment...
Your kidding... Right ?..

Sadly, probably not.
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Maxo
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Re: Since I know *someone* will make the mistake...

said by Mactron See Profile :

said by Cabal See Profile :

No, it's not entrapment...
Your kidding... Right ?..

Sadly, probably not.
Why would he be kidding? Entrapment is something a person of law enforcement does. If the police had setup this site then it would have been entrapment.
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Mactron
el Camino Real
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Re: Since I know *someone* will make the mistake...

When this lands in court, and it probably will.
We'll see.

Maxo
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Re: Since I know *someone* will make the mistake...

Ok.

Maxo
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·Embarq

Some help for you.
said by »www.lectlaw.com/def/e024.htm :

ENTRAPMENT - A person is 'entrapped' when he is induced or persuaded by law enforcement officers or their agents to commit a crime that he had no previous intent to commit; and the law as a matter of policy forbids conviction in such a case.

N3OGH
They both suck, we're so screwed
Premium
join:2003-11-11
Philly burbs
Maxo's right.

Unless law enforcement is doing the enticing, it's not entrapment.
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jsouth
Jsouth

join:2000-12-12
Wichita, KS

Actually it wouldn't be entrapment even if law enforcement ran it. It's like the "bait car". No one forces you to go to it and get the files. Now if someone from law enforcement said to use this site and you got arrested, that would be entrapment.
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Cabal
Premium
join:2007-01-21
02101

said by Mactron See Profile :

said by Cabal See Profile :

No, it's not entrapment...
Your kidding... Right ?..

Sadly, probably not.
I hear dictionaries do more than prop up table legs, you might want to look into it.
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Mactron
el Camino Real
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CM94sv

Re: Since I know *someone* will make the mistake...

said by Cabal See Profile :

I hear dictionaries...
Since you've only "hear" about them. Ever owned or read one ?
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Noah Vail
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Lorton, VA
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Thanks Cabal!

said by Cabal See Profile :

said by Mactron See Profile :

said by Cabal See Profile :

No, it's not entrapment...
Your kidding... Right ?..

Sadly, probably not.
I hear dictionaries do more than prop up table legs, you might want to look into it.
When you beat your wife, that's Domestic Abuse or Domestic Battery. That's a bad thing.

But when you have your neighbor beat your wife, that's battery w/ assault. That's a different thing.

Since the abuse comes from a different source, that makes it NOT domestic battery. Therefore it must be legal, ethical and generally a good thing to do; at least by your logic.

Well, go right on ahead then.

NV
--
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N3OGH
They both suck, we're so screwed
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join:2003-11-11
Philly burbs
·Verizon Online DSL

Re: Thanks Cabal!

said by Noah Vail See Profile :

When you beat your wife, that's Domestic Abuse or Domestic Battery. That's a bad thing.

But when you have your neighbor beat your wife, that's battery w/ assault. That's a different thing.

Since the abuse comes from a different source, that makes it NOT domestic battery. Therefore it must be legal, ethical and generally a good thing to do; at least by your logic.

Well, go right on ahead then.

NV
It's not a matter of legal or ethical. I don't think anyone is arguing FOR the RIAA here. It's despicable what they are doing, but.

You make his case for him.

True, if you beat your wife, it's domestic violence. If your neighbor beats your wife, it's assault. Both are bad.

But, if you beat your wife you'll be subject to a PFA, taking away quite a few of your civil rights, primarily your right to possess a deadly weapon.

If your neighbor beats your wife, he will not be subject to such restrictions. The end result (beaten wife) is the same, but the crimes are different.

Just as in this case, it is NOT entrapment. Only law enforcement can "entrap" people. It doesn't make it right, but that's just the law...
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Re: Thanks Cabal!

His point is because it was a source other than law enforcement it was ethically and legally a really good thing to do.

That is, as long as the source changes, the ethics of the action changes.

Unless I missed the part where he condemned Big Media for using malware techniques to further along a financial goal.

NV
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Maxo
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Re: Thanks Cabal!

said by Noah Vail See Profile :

His point is because it was a source other than law enforcement it was ethically and legally a really good thing to do.
No it's not. Nobody argued that. You pulled it out of thin air. The only point made anywhere in this thread is that this is not entrapment.

Noah Vail
Serial Thread Killer
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Lorton, VA
·Verizon BroadbandA..
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edit:
July 5th, @06:36PM

Re: Thanks Cabal!

Let's see how Cabal feels about Big Media using Malware to reach it's financial goals.

said by Cabal See Profile :

It definitely made me smile, though.
Like TCH, I find it interesting that Cabal disappears entirely from the tread once his views are elucidated. It's almost as if the glaring light of reason is painful for him.

Nice of you to defend him. Care to clearly state your views on the issue?

NV
edited for missspelnig
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Maxo
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Re: Thanks Cabal!

said by Noah Vail See Profile :

Care to clearly state your views on the issue?
I think I've been clear on my views. I believe that this is not entrapment.

Noah Vail
Serial Thread Killer
Premium
join:2004-12-10
Lorton, VA
·Verizon BroadbandA..
·VoicePulse

Re: Thanks Cabal!

That would be a lovely answer, if that were the question being asked.

Once again, do you believe that applying this tactic as a means to improve Big Media's financial situation is ethical?

I wait here, pondering what question you will answer next.

NV
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Maxo
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Re: Thanks Cabal!

I never brought up the debate of ethics. I was only discussing the point of whether or not this is entrapment. I keep answering the question about whether or not I believe this is entrapment and I keep saying that I don't think it is. I've never made a statement regarding ethics. You have imposed an ethical opinion on me, but I have never made any statements regarding it. Ethics is an issue you brought up, not myself or Cabal See Profile.
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cableties
Premium
join:2005-01-27
Levittown, PA
Wait. Not good analogy. One, you aren't married or have a wife (you don't own the movie or song). So unless, you are looking for the wife to beat...

See 7 replies to this post
Kearnstd
Elf Wizard

join:2002-01-22
Mullica Hill, NJ

how does this program know something is pirated, i mean i could just as easy rip a DVD to my laptop HDD for example for a long trip where i dont wanna lose or damage the optical media. and this ripping is 100% legal under US Copyright law's Fair Use clause.
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sporkme
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Netcong, NJ

Re: Since I know *someone* will make the mistake...

said by Kearnstd See Profile :

and this ripping is 100% legal under US Copyright law's Fair Use clause.
And 100% illegal under the DMCA.

Which wins?

pog
Premium
join:2004-06-03
Kihei, HI
·Hawaiian Telcom

said by Kearnstd See Profile :

how does this program know something is pirated, ...
The program is quite complex as you can imagine... first, it scans your system for *.mp3, *.avi ...then it totals everything up.
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Kearnstd
Elf Wizard

join:2002-01-22
Mullica Hill, NJ

well in a court of law in front of a jury, id imagine the DMCA wont hold water. why do you think in many questionable cases the MPAA and RIAA do not want a jury trial and prefer a scare settlement.
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Kearnstd
Elf Wizard

join:2002-01-22
Mullica Hill, NJ
piracy has zero effect on the cost of music and movies imo, its what they blame but when i see stars getting 20mil+ for a film i begin to wonder.
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Steve B

join:2004-08-02
Seattle, WA

What a crock of shhhhhhh..........t

I never liked the idea of sting operations such as this. To me its completely contradictory when you (MPAA) go out and help directly startup/contribute to/fan the actual crime just so you can catch people doing it.

seant169

join:2003-07-21
Forney, TX
·Suddenlink

WTF

If we were to do this we would be burried in legal SHi#
and the MAPP should be slaped with a big fine as well as loose their internet privilages from their isp. just like we would have to do. This is SPYING at its finest...The Govt should hire MPAA to do their spy work.
madrhino

join:2004-07-03
·Verizon FIOS
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Re: WTF

said by seant169 See Profile :

..The Govt should hire MPAA to do their spy work.
It works the other way around sadly enough.The MPAA hires congress members to do their dirty work.
--
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seant169

join:2003-07-21
Forney, TX

We should

We should poision them back.. THere must be a way.
and teach them a lesson.

See 6 replies to this post

tomj1225
Premium
join:2001-12-17
Allentown, PA

Is it wrong to steal from a thief?

You were expecting integrity from the MPAA then? Hoping they'd just do the right thing on their own I guess? I think that although downloading or uploading movies may be illegal, this type of behavior is illegal also. This is a violation of some hacking law, etc. Of course they're going to say but these are thieves! We had to take drastic behavior! Neither side has ANY integrity and the MPAA and the RIAA's of the world will soon slip away into irrelevance.
ossito16

join:2004-07-31
Whiting, IN

take the MPAA approach

I wish I had the skills to fight back against this kind of craziness. Why doesn't someone just mount a huge offensive against these companies i.e. dos or ddos. In Europe and Korea these types of tactics are growing against companies who do not want to play fair. I have no problem setting up dummy websites but the minute you start hacking our PC's to gather information, then all bets are off. I would be interesting to go through the dumpster of Media Defender and see what info could be gathered there i.e. employee names, MPAA contacts, etc. I guess it is time to start reading the "neworder" website again and learn a few tricks. Just remember MPAA/RIAA, we did not start this, YOU DID!

ok, i feel better now.

See 16 replies to this post

Jahntassa
What, I can have feathers

join:2006-04-14
Conyers, GA

Mm..I feel so warm and fuzzy

I just SO want to go out and buy some CDs now that I know the MPAA is looking out for ME, the consumer!

Helllll no.

I know they're looking after their 'property' or whatever, but isn't this an illegal search and seizure or something? I mean I can't go over to my neighbor's house and see if he has any other CDs he borrowed from me or something.

swhx7
Premium
join:2006-07-23
Elbonia
·RoadRunner Cable

Traps for dummies

1. It's not going to work for long when there are news reports about it right away. And now most of the file-sharing community are alert to this.

2. They required users to register, then download and install software to use the service. Supposedly it would make downloads faster. Can you say "red flag"? I knew you could.

The copyright cartels are running out of feet to shoot themselves in. Someday when it's too late they will wake up and realize, "Hey maybe we should offer high-quality, DRM-free downloads for reasonable prices!"

TOPDAWG
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Midland, ON
·TekSavvy Solutions..

Re: Traps for dummies

said by swhx7 See Profile :

The copyright cartels are running out of feet to shoot themselves in. Someday when it's too late they will wake up and realize, "Hey maybe we should offer high-quality, DRM-free downloads for reasonable prices!"
Lets be honest here you can get that for free from a 1 min search or however long it takes to type in what you want. You can't beat free. However I won't lie yeah I download music and movies now if I like a movie I download I go buy it music I would never ever buy.

So really they're not losing sales cause most down loaders would never buy the movies and music anyway download or not. Hell downloading stuff has made me buy more then I would have before.

Gandalf1315
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Indianapolis, IN
·Vonage
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Re: Traps for dummies

I think the vast majority of people over 18 (aka, folks with jobs) would gladly pay for guaranteed high quality, DRM-Free downloads at reasonable prices. Particularly from high speed trusted/secure sites.

These morons (record and movie execs) forget that humans are impulsive by nature and want things NOW. Not thieves by nature. We live on fast food and microwaved meals. Other industries are making 100's of millions by catering to human nature. The record and movie industries are just too stubborn to cash in.
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said by swhx7 See Profile :

Someday when it's too late they will wake up and realize, "Hey maybe we should offer high-quality, DRM-free downloads for reasonable prices!"
In most cases, it is already too late for the cartels.
Had they done this just after Napster had been shut
down, they would have made a fortune. Now it is too late
for them to put the genie back into the bottle.
--
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TOPDAWG
Premium
join:2005-04-27
Midland, ON

wow

That is some BS right here. That that why I stay with my trusted trackers.

blueeyesm

join:2003-09-05
Waterloo, ON

Hmmm....

I wonder if it just checked the computer, or an entire LAN,....
lesopp

join:2001-06-27
Land O Lakes, FL

If I had the means

1. Hire attorney
2. Setup a new PC with the software for downloading the alleged pirated movies, making sure nothing is uploaded by other people
3. Conduct daily downloads until a court summons shows up
4. File counter suits against the MPAA and the company that ran the server.

If the MPAA provides copyrighted material and thinks it ok for the company they hire to knowingly pass it on, then is there really a crime? I say no.

If the MPAA hires a company to fraudulently gain access and install anything that gathers information then aren't they breaking laws? I say yes.

Shouldn't they be made to pay court costs, reasonable attorney fees and punitive damages for compromising the infected PC? I say yes.
MASantangelo
Premium
join:2004-07-19
Pittstown, NJ

How do they differentiate?

but instead was a software application that scanned a user's PC and reported back any pirated content to the MPAA.
How do they differentiate between illegally pirated content, my legitimate backups of my owned movies, and non-mpaa content? My guess is that it doesn't. It probably scans for mp3, mpg, avi, etc etc and calls back saying you have x files with names. The MPAA probably doesn't even look at the names, they have x things they think they can go after you for.
-_-
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RayW
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Layton, UT
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Re: How do they differentiate?

said by MASantangelo See Profile :

but instead was a software application that scanned a user's PC and reported back any pirated content to the MPAA.
How do they differentiate between illegally pirated content, my legitimate backups of my owned movies, and non-mpaa content? My guess is that it doesn't. It probably scans for mp3, mpg, avi, etc etc and calls back saying you have x files with names. The MPAA probably doesn't even look at the names, they have x things they think they can go after you for.
-_-
According to the MPAA, if you do anything other than play the DVD in one player in one spot, you are suspected of 'piracy', (and 'piracy' is in quotes because the MPAA changes the definition to whatever they want). If they could, the first time you played the DVD it would then be ONLY playable in that player. That way you could not loan it out, trade, resell, or otherwise treat it as yours.
--
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boober321

join:2003-07-15
Milwaukee, WI

Re: How do they differentiate?

They tried that, but it didn't fly with consumers... If they could get together on it, I wouldn't doubt they'd do it...
RayW
Premium
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Layton, UT
clubs:
·XMission

Re: How do they differentiate?

A neighbor of mine who is in the business (retailer/producer) told me that his take on what has been said in various industry meetings is that given a chance, the people who control the system would have all media tied to one player - no sharing, no trading, no mobility, no rights (for the consumer). The region coding was probably suppose to be the first step in that direction.

But then again, he has had kids walk into the store and brag that it is their turn to buy the disk to copy for a trading club of 20 or more people. So there are two sides to the story. I am not against copying music to share with friends, that is one way music gets spread and other people might get interested in buying other pieces of that artist(s) (a significant percentage of my music is because someone gave me a copy of something and I liked it enough to go buy other related pieces), but wholesale deliberate and planned theft is a different story.
--
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cdru
Go Colts
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join:2003-05-14
Fort Wayne, IN

Can you spot the imposter?

Transformers-SCREENER-AcID.avi 712,343,876 bytes
Transformers-SCREENER-AcID.exe 102,234 bytes

Come on folks, it can't be that hard to spot the imposter...
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