Peer to Peer

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Peer to Peer (P2P)

Peer to Peer file sharing is a big part of New Media. It allows anyone to share virtually anything in a very cost effective way. Of course, much of the stuff available on Peer to Peer networks is pirated; however it doesn't stop millions of people from using it on a daily basis.

Peer to peer sharing took away the two traditional groups of clients and servers and introduced peers who could function both as a client and a server. Earlier forms of P2P file sharing followed a centralized model (such as Napster) while newer forms work in a decentralized model(Limewire). A peer can download files while at the same time uploading it back and contributing to other users. This differs from a Server - Client method, where there is one server which just uploads all the files to users who only download.

Image:P2p-file-sharing.png


Besides pirating movies, music and television shows there are other benefits to P2P which you may not even be aware of such as the features offered by Skype and video streaming services such as Joost which uses P2P TV.

History of P2P

Beginnings

It all began in universities and town community centers, where monthly computer clubs were held. Early computer users would gather to discuss the latest software and physically trade floppy disks with one another so they could improve upon their source codes (a written script that makes up an .exe). In other words, it was the legitimate exchange of software between peers, at a time when software was difficult to acquire and, in a sense, the first form of P2P file sharing.

The need and idea for Peer to Peer file sharing can also be attributed to UseNet, a type of Newsgroup network. This is still actually used to a great deal in the P2P pirating world as it allows much higher download speeds than torrents usually would.


In the late 1980s technology further evolved, allowing for computer users to remotely connect to other machines by dialing into them through their phone lines (modems). This process and application was known as the Bulletin Board System, otherwise known as BBS. A BBS allowed for users to connect simultaneously via their phone lines. Once connected to the BBS, users could chat, have message boards, and host files. BBS fostered digital piracy in the sense that it allowed pirates to remotely host and distribute pirated media, as well as, keep in contact with other pirates. Some of the top BBS had more than a gigabyte of storage, which was about 700 floppy disks, or approximately 250 computer applications.

By 1994, BBS were booming; there were over 10,000 BBS in the United States, and law enforcement did little to penalize BBS owners.

IRC Pirate "site" channel
IRC Pirate "site" channel
By 1993, a technology first created in 1978 by AT&T Bell Laboratories, had been perfected and popularized. This technology is known as Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN). ISDNs were much faster than the previous methods used to connect to BBS — and nearly three times faster — and many corporations and universities jumped on the new, faster, technology, and ironically, fostered the creation “sites” (large servers used to host thousands of different types of digitally-pirated media)and use of Internet Relay Chat networks, commonly referred to as IRC (Internet Relay Chat). Digital Subscriber Lines (DSL) eventually replaced ISDNs, and in the past four years, fiber-optics (and cable) has been replacing DSL, allowing for faster, more stable sites and IRC networks.


Besides BBS and Newsgroups (UseNet), key-player in the P2P world is IRC . Before torrents, and even before Napster, the IRC networks such as EfNET would have thousands of chat rooms where people would exchange files. IRC networks play a pivotal role in communication between pirates, as well as, receiving information about a particular pirated CD or other forms of pirated digital media. Anyone can connect to an IRC network, with the use of a number of free or purchased client programs (e.g.: MiRC and XChat). Connected Users are able to have real-time text chats in private messages (like you would have on AIM) or in chat rooms, called “channels.” Over the years, IRC networks have evolved, incorporating secure socket layering (SSL) as well as features to make connected users virtually invisible on a network. Depending on your status in the "scene" (a global-community of digital pirates, based on IRC), you might have access to sites with high speeds for such files and other things.

The Scene

Scene Add-Pre Channel

The Scene isn't a piece of software, a place or a type of download. The scene, "is a collection of piracy enthusiasts from all groups and lifestyles", with the intention to rip and exchange (free of charge) digital media globally. It’s a group of people with one common goal, downloading the latest files as quickly as humanly and technically possible. It actually originated many years ago, when groups of computer “geeks” would quite literally travel to each others' houses and trade software which was pirated. We are talking floppy disks from the five and a quarter era, the mid 1970’s. Now because traveling is an inconvenience and the internet started to kick off, there became a new opportunity to transfer files without leaving your desk.

IRC, which is a major part of the scene, allows for members of scene pirate groups to gather and discuss releases, get news, and see new releases on sites. Every scene pirate group has a group channel on an IRC network (many even have their own private IRC networks). Many of the early groups had their group’s name as their channel name and anyone could join the channel to potentially offer their services to the group. Members of the group idle in a channel for hours, days and even years, in order to keep up-to-date with scene-related issues.

Sites are an integral part of the scene, perhaps, even more so than IRC networks.
Scene FTP site
Scene FTP site
“Sites” are secure (TLS/SSL) File Transfer Protocol (FTP) servers to which users connect via a hostname and port (e.g.: mysite.my-ftp.com:998). Sites host all the pirated files that scene pirates rip. They can host the following pirated media types: MP3s, applications, movies (DVDs, XViD and X264), console games, ebooks, operating systems, and an immense amount of pornography, in various formats (note: true scene sites strictly prohibit child pornography and beastiality).

Unlike BBS’s, which consisted of only a few 19.6kps lines that allowed only five to ten people to connect simultaneously, modern day sites can range from 10mbps to 1gbps in speed, and can have up to fifty users logged in at once (depending on the site’s capacity/bandwidth).

Sites serve as the heart of the scene. All pirated releases are uploaded and distributed through sites. There are even elaborate scripts (called “dupecheck"), for use on IRC, that list every pirated media release that was put out onto the scene.

Pirate groups, usually shortened to just “groups,” are several people who team up to pirate and pre (release) a type, or types, of digital media (MP3, DVDs, console games, etc…). There are more than one thousand groups, which are part of the modern-day scene. Each group has their own private channel for its members on an IRC network. A group’s main purpose is to build a strong reputation for themselves. The group chooses a name (used as a tag their pirated media’s directories) and has their group’s statistics universally available to all members of the scene via automated scripts that run on IRC ("Prebots"). The group’s goal is to have great group statistics based on the number of pred releases per week and the absence of flaws in their releases.

The most important rule of the scene (aside from secrecy) is: groups have to make sure their ripped media has not been released yet (not a duplicate, thus “dupe”); this process is known as “dupechecking.” A dupecheck database is hosted on that stores and sends information about millions of scene releases, the pivotal feature is the date and time a release was pred at. The highest ranked topsites have dupe scripts built in and with information on releases pred during the days of BBS’.

For a pirated release to be spread around the scene, there are a number of rules and guidelines that must be followed. If a ripped album has met all the rules, the album can then be “pred” (short for Pre-releasing). When a group pres a release, they are moving their ripped album from a hidden group folder on an affiliated site, to a public folder on their affiliated site, vis-à-vis, making it spread to other sites on the scene via “racers” (people who trade pirated releases between sites) within a matter of minutes.

Napster to Present

The invention of Napster brought P2P to the mainstream. Released in 1999 this was the first program that allowed you to upload and download music. This early P2P file sharing program followed a central model. Under this method users hosted their own files through the use of their own computer and a central server was used to index files and find peers. Before if you wanted to use P2P, you had to be computer inclined. With Napster, anyone with an internet connection was able to download an unlimited amount of songs. This is when the recording industries finally started to encounter huge revenue losses and see that P2P was a big problem for them.In 2003 alone the music industry lost $2.4 billion to illegal downloading. Napster was eventually shut down in 2001 due to legal issues, however p2p programs have continued to be developed. Kazaa, Limewire, Gnutella, and more came out to step in for Napster.

Finally, in the last 5 years or so, torrents became widely popular. They offer faster speeds, with easier access and more anonymity than previous programs and can be used by anyone.

List of Most Popular P2P File Sharing Applications

BitTorrent

BitTorrent is considered as a “Napster redux - another rumble in the endless copyright wars." It is the global standard for delivering high-quality files over the Internet. With an installed base of over 160 million clients worldwide BitTorrent accounts for 35% of all of the traffic on the internet,and has turned conventional distribution economics on its head. The more popular a large video, audio or software file, the faster and cheaper it can be transferred with BitTorrent. The result is a better digital entertainment experience for everyone.

How does BitTorent work?

Contrary to the traditional client-server method, when you download a torrent file using a BitTorrent Client, you're not getting it from a central server; you're getting pieces of it from other people like you who have downloaded the file. The torrent file is like a map of the file. It informs you how many chunks it’s broken into, file hashes for each chunk, and the URL of the “tracker”. The tracker registers the IP address of every client who requests the file. This process shifts the burden of hosting large files to downloaders, making it easier for people and organizations to distribute software and media without incurring huge bandwidth bills. It maximizes transfer speed by gathering pieces of the file you want and downloading these pieces simultaneously from people who already have the file. They are referred to as “seeders.” More seeders and downloaders mean faster downloads because as soon as someone receives a piece of the file, he also starts sharing it. It takes hours to download DVD-ripped movies but with BitTorent, downloads can only take minutes.

Sites such as The Pirate Bay, isoHunt, mininova, and Torrentz offer basically everything you could ever want to download as torrent files.

Here are BitTorrent Clients:

  • Bittorrent - the official BitTorrent program
  • µTorrent - a condensed version
  • Vuze (formally named Azureus) - written in Java
  • BitComet - a type of download manager (can download other things besides torrents)

LimeWire

LimeWire is a free peer-to-peer file sharing (P2P) client for Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, and other operating systems supported by the Java software platform. With over 50 million unique monthly users, Limewire is downloaded hundreds of thousands of times every day and boasts millions of active users at any given moment. LimeWire now uses the BitTorrent protocol and the Gnutella network to provide unparalleled searches and download speed to the user. As always, LimeWire takes the security of its users very seriously and offers the world's most technologically advanced peer-to-peer software.

Kazaa

Kazaa was one of best and most popular P2P during early days of P2P evolution. But in past few years, due to many issues like virus infected files, lawsuits, spywares, it has lost its popularity. However, Kazaa has been continually trying to make Kazaa network virus and spyware free with many new features like built in virus scanner, infected file blocking made available in latest Kazaa Client to protect users.

Now, Kazaa is a subscription-based service, an online distributor of licensed digital content.

Other uses for P2P

P2P doesn't necessarily mean file sharing between two users. In reality P2P is just transmission of data from one peer to another.The idea of P2P works very well with Skype. Skype offers a great service for audio/video communication and chatting while using very little of their own server resources. Their servers are only used for login and account purposes; the actual data transmission is done through you and the person you are talking to. This is VERY efficient.

Also the idea of P2PTV works great with such services as Joost. With P2PTV you do need a server, at least one, which will transmit the data to a certain number of users, now those users while receiving and watching the video will transmit the same data they are watching to other users who want to watch the same thing. This GREATLY reduces the server load and increases the efficiency of the service drastically.

The way a P2PTV system works:

Issues in P2P Sharing

Copyright Violation

People are in violation of copyright law when they copy or distribute copyrighted material without the consent of the copyright holder. Enforcement of digital copyright violations are continually let down by the large population of users who participate in online file sharing and the rapid technological innovation that usually keeps the file-sharing community one-step ahead of the law. The word warez is a generic term used to refer to copyrighted materials that are shared illegally over the Internet. Taking the form of an executable file (.exe or .app) or other digitally encoded form (e.g., .mp3, .jpg, or .mpg file), warez generally consist of commercially available computer software, audio and video, video games, still pictures, as well as just about anything else that can be packaged and delivered over the Internet.

Currently, tens of millions of Americans engage in file sharing. It has proven to be an overwhelming task for “Big Content” (the DMCA) to make progress in stopping this new phenomenon, due to the sheer number of people who actually participate in illegal file-sharing . As The Harvard Crimson staff write: “Litigation may persist, but the problem of lost revenues will never be relieved by virtue of litigation on an individual-by-individual basis”. U.S. lawmakers have proven that they have neither the desire nor the human/financial resources to make criminals out of tens of millions of generally law-abiding citizens. In addition to taking legal action against a small fraction of copyright violators, big Content increasingly takes action against (a) the developers of file-sharing software, (b) OSPs, and (c) the search engines that make file sharing a feasible enterprise.

Peer-to peer file -sharing (P2P) represents a relatively new and different form of file-swapping technology. As such, it allows a large population of users to share public or copyrighted materials over the Internet, and operates within a decentralized manner. While storing copyrighted materials in a central location proved to be Napster’s downfall, decentralized P2P networks (e.g., Gnutella, BitTorrent, Grokster) operate in an environment where files are stored on millions of users’ computer hard drives. Similar to Usenet file sharing, tracking and controlling digital copyright infringement in a decentralized P2P networking environment has proven to be an increasingly difficult task.

Napster was found guilty of copyright infringement because their centralized server allowed them to gather information on the identity of its users and the content that was being shared. Napster failed to stop illegal sharing even though they had the ability to remove files or freeze user’s accounts. Grokster, a decentralized P2P file sharing program did not have the ability to control the content being distributed over the network and thus they were protected under the DMCA safe harbors initially. The case with Grokster went all the way to the Supreme Court and ultimately they were found guilty because their advertising methods encouraged copyright infringement. Essentially the courts believed that Grokster was well aware of the illegal content hosted on its network and continued to promote and allow this activity. These two cases illustrate how the format of the P2P network greatly impacts the effectiveness of copyright laws against P2P networks.

File Sharing Risks

It’s a good idea to understand and anticipate the risks of P2P file sharing before you download your first file.

Risk #1: Security Risks

Shared files can contain security risks such as leaking confidential information, and expose users to viruses, spyware, and other unwanted software.

Users may accidentally share a folder that contains confidential information. This can happen in many ways; the most common ways are when a P2P program flags a generic folder for sharing, and when a user does not understand the upload mechanics of a P2P program. Many users are unaware that most P2P programs flag a generic folder for sharing such as “My Documents”. Any files found in this folder may be downloaded off the P2P Network while the user is connected. With regard to the 2nd most common way if a user decides to share their music over a P2P network they may not be aware that a P2P network does not differentiate between file types and any type of file in the shared folder will be available over the P2P Network. One study showed that a search on a P2P network returned confidential information in the form of birth certificates, passports, tax returns, and even FASFA applications (Why File Sharing Networks Are Dangerous?).

Many files that appear legitimate could be a virus in disguise. People wishing to spread malicious software can disguise it by renaming the file to a popular song or program. Once uploaded to a P2P Network it can be hard to distinguish between a real and fake, it is even harder to get the fake file removed from the P2P Network. Unwary file sharers can also download beneficial software that incorporates undisclosed spyware with it. Many P2P programs come bundled with more software than required, some of which can be malicious.

You can help prevent these dangers by following these steps: • Understand how your P2P program works with regard to choosing upload/download sources • Use a firewall • Update your operating system and the other software on your computer • Install antivirus software such as Microsoft Security Essentials and keep it active and current • Install antispyware software such as Windows Defender and keep it active and current

Risk #2: Breaking copyright laws

Reputable P2P software is legal to use, but if you choose to do so, it's important to understand and differentiate between copyrighted and public domain material and to share responsibly. When in doubt about a given file, it's best not to share or download it because organizations such as the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) and the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) will not hesitate to sue offenders.

The RIAA alone has brought 10,000 lawsuits against different people of all walks of life. A mother from Minnesota was sued by the RIAA and fined $1.92 million for illegally sharing 24 songs. Another example is of 83 year old Gertrude Walton, who was sued one month after she died for illegally sharing 700 pop, rock, and rap tracks online using the net handle ‘smittenedkitten’.

Depending on what kind of property you are distributing, you can also be fined up to $250,000 or sentenced to jail up to 25 years. Many users find this punishment to be far too harsh as 25 years in prison is the less than the number of years given to people convicted of statutory rape.

Risk #3: Kids' Access to Pornography

Many file-sharing programs allow children to access inappropriate audio and video clips -- most of a sexually explicit nature. Kids searching for popular music files may sometimes inadvertently pull up sexually explicit files that use the same keywords. For older children, parents should be concerned about their access to other people's video libraries that may contain inappropriate videos. If you're concerned about these things, make sure to check your computer for file-sharing programs. See a list of some file-sharing programs. Some parental-control tools on the market do not restrict access to file-sharing technologies. Check the GetNetWise Tools for Families database to search for tools that restrict access to file-sharing or peer-to-peer networksTemplate:Citation needed.

Benefits of P2P

Benefit #1: P2P saves companies money

Legitimate companies and organizations are starting to use P2P technology such as BitTorrent in order to reduce costs related to bandwidth usage and distribution (i.e. DVDs or CDs). Smaller companies, along with companies that release freeware often use P2P technology as their primary source of distribution because without it they would not be able to absorb the costs to get their products out on the market. By using P2P each customer can act as another marketing agent by sharing the company’s services to another peer in the network. Some companies that currently use P2P are Mandrake Linux, Etree, and Slashdot

Benefit #2: P2P helps musicians

Previously it was mentioned that the industry that suffers most from P2P file sharing was the music industry and this was true early on however recent research conducted by a Netherlands based company revealed that illegal file sharing is actually having a positive effect to the record industry as a whole.

The assumption that record labels use in determining their losses from file sharing is that for every 1 download there is 1 loss in sales. This assumption is inaccurate however because not everyone who illegally downloads music would have purchased the music otherwise. It is for that reason that losses are often inaccurate and overstated.

The research revealed that out of the people who download music and movies the percentage of buyers was just as high as the people who did not download. The research also showed that people who downloaded music illegally were more likely to visit concerts or buy merchandise related to their favorite band.

Many new musicians are finding that P2P is helping people discover their music and give them more exposure. They do not necessarily believe that they should not be compensated for their work but newer musicians are finding that P2P opens more doors than it closes.

It also enables creators of work to make large amount of content available online as there are several creators who might not work in order to obtain profit but just to share their creation which provides them satisfaction.

Benefit # 3: P2P sparks innovation

Many innovative web projects are founded on the basis of its users sharing something and P2P networks are no different. Image sharing can be seen through the popular website Flicker, friend sharing through Facebook, video sharing through YouTube, audio sharing through Skype and so on. Through P2P networks you offer sharing in many different file formats while at the same time offering the user the independence to decide what to share and the freedom to share it because you can bypass limitations such as bandwidth and hosting costs.

Preventing P2P Piracy

Although piracy is pretty much impossible to eliminate altogether, different methods have been tried to keep piracy at bay. Lawmakers have attempted to pass several laws hoping to discourage piracy such as the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement. This treaty would pretty much allow government agencies the right to filter through all content and even cellphones of customers to check for illegal content. This has caused enormous concern over privacy rights which are why the treaty is yet to be passed. The property holders are also attempting to use various technologies to keep illegal access to their material such as using digital watermarking which display copyright owners and distribution rights on the content.

Verizon, one of the largest internet providers, started to disable service for its users who were caught pirating. They start off by sending warning letters and if it continues, they cancel the users’ services. Comcast, another internet provider, actually limited internet speeds of its clients caught using P2P software for illegal reasons. As a result of such interference from internet providers, many customers are starting to question their level of privacy. Following the doings of Verizon, AT&T, Cablevision, and Time Warner Cable announced that they agreed a deal with major media companies to limit internet speeds or cut service to customers caught pirating. Many customers complained that internet service providers had no business monitoring what customers were doing.

Impact

Impact on the Media Industry

Since the introduction of Napster in 1999, the decrease in music sales is largely attributed to P2P file sharing. The vast availability of music on the internet through blogs, BitTorrent and other means has reportedly cost media companies billions of dollars in sales. Even though some users may be using such accessibility to preview or sample music before deciding to purchase it, users are largely illegally downloading music files. Similarly, the movie industry has been affected as well, albeit less than the music industry because movie files are much larger and therefore more time consuming to distribute.

Impact on the Mobile Application and Gaming Industry

Android application developers have suffered the hardest from their applications being pirated. Since the Android operating system and market are open source, it is easier for pirating and counterfeiting to take place. Piracy has cost developers up to $10,000 in revenues and maintenance costs; considering most applications cost $0.99 that means over 10,000 copies are being distributed illegally. A large amount of the piracy is taking place on forums and developers are trying to implement anti-piracy functions into their developments. The iPhone application market is a target of piracy as well. It is still the largest application market for mobile phones but its developers have not suffered as much as Android application developers. Video games have also been affected, suffering around $350 million due to counterfeits and illegal versions being spread on the internet and locally. Piracy does not stop here; even e-books designed for mobile reading or an e-reader are being illegally distributed.

References

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