Indictment Charges Megaupload Site With Piracy

Originally posted by Evil_Santa

Originally posted by boncho

I did hear from someone though that the Feds have emails which indicates they were aware and they took part in uploading content. So far just a rumor but I'll look for supporting articles.

That's absolutely impossible unless the Feds are hacking into email servers now...

Here's why.

Within an email system all emails that go from-to the same domain stay within that server. if [email protected] sends an email to [email protected] the software will recognize it's going intranetwork and WILL NOT SEND THE EMAIL THROUGH THE INTERNET.

The only way this could be different is if they're not using VPN access to their servers but even at that -- the person would have a direct connection to the server through either an email client (outlook/thunderbird/etc) or through the web-interface itself.

I understand where you are coming from but given that the Feds went to the trouble of arresting people in New Zealand, shutting down one of the top websites in the world, and laying down the largest piracy indictment in US history.... I would imagine the investigation leading up to this was pretty intensive. Not sure what tactics they used, but there is plenty for them to get information.

Originally posted by Evil_Santa

Originally posted by boncho

I did hear from someone though that the Feds have emails which indicates they were aware and they took part in uploading content. So far just a rumor but I'll look for supporting articles.

That's absolutely impossible unless the Feds are hacking into email servers now...

Here's why.

Within an email system all emails that go from-to the same domain stay within that server. if [email protected] sends an email to [email protected] the software will recognize it's going intranetwork and WILL NOT SEND THE EMAIL THROUGH THE INTERNET.

The only way this could be different is if they're not using VPN access to their servers but even at that -- the person would have a direct connection to the server through either an email client (outlook/thunderbird/etc) or through the web-interface itself.

So it seems a copy of the indictment has been made available online:

HERE>

If what it says is true, these people that own the site are really screwed.

MegaUpload was primarily hosted in Virginia by a web hosting provider called Carpathia Hosting. Carpathia leased more than 1000 servers with a total of 25 petabytes of storage to MegaUpload.
MegaUpload had its second big data center in the Netherlands, where web host Leaseweb rented and hosted close to 700 servers for the company.
MegaUpoad users paid more than $110 million to the company via PayPal.
The MegaUpload imperium employed more than 30 people in 9 different countries.
The FBI and foreign authorities seized close to 60 bank accounts as well as various PayPal accounts.
Authorities also seized around 30 cars and motorcycles, including a number of Mercedes-Benz cars with novelty license plates like “STONED”, “GUILTY” and “MAFIA.”
MegaUpload founder Kim Schmitz allegedly owns 68 percent of Megaupload as well as its image hosting site Megapix.com and the affiliate site Megaclick.com. He owns 100 percent of Megavideo.com, Megaporn.com and Megapay.com. He made $42 million in 2010.
Mathias Ortmann, a long-time collaborator with Schmitz who was arrested on Thursday as well, owns 25 percent of the Mega empire. He co-founded MegaUpload and has been serving as the company’s CTO. Ortmann made $5 million in 2010.
The MegaUpload crew kick-started its Megavideo hosting site by copying videos from YouTube, and the indictment quotes from internal emails stating: Do we have a server available to continue downloading of the Youtube’s vids? … Kim just mentioned again that this has really priority.” Another email stated: “Kim really wants to copy Youtube one to one.”
Other emails show how executives discussed cash rewards for uploaders who had provided specific DVDs and other copyrighted works.
Further emails show how some of the executives scoured their own service to download copies of The Sopranos and various music albums.
The indictment even includes chat logs with conversations between company executives, which include statements like: “we have a funny business . . . modern days pirates

”

Read through all nine pages of posts, and I didn't see this anywhere.
It appears that
mpaa.org
fbi.gov
and
riaa.org
are all up and running again. Or at least backed up.

reply to post by boncho


So let me get this straight; If I record a song that I personally choose to give away for free; I cannot use megaupload(or equivalent) to do so? What about all the truly legitimate uses for FILE-SHARING? What about free and open source material?

Originally posted by THE_PROFESSIONAL
This is all the more warranting for a satellite based ISP without any country and laws who answers to no one.

PopSci put out the current magazine where they talk about laptop sized box satellites.

edit on 19-1-2012 by THE_PROFESSIONAL because: (no reason given)

Top Level Domain would still need to know how to direct traffic to them, so SOPA et al would still effectively shut it down.

This legislation will not just affect the US. It will impact world wide.

It seems to me that they are flexing their muscle just before the battle, as if to boast they are serious. I will be adding relevant websites to my hosts file just in case.

Originally posted by XPLodER
this action shows pipa and sopa are not necacery,
the feds already have ample powers to act and achive any real objective.
sopa and pipa will be bought back when no body is wactching.

REMEMBER the feds have HAD these powers the hole time they pressed for more power and acted defencless.

sopa and pipa is NOT required to bring people before the courts.

xploder

They cannot go after non-US based entities, so rather than expend enormous amounts of energy trying to get to them, this act effectively shuts those websites down.

People should read this dyn.com... which explains what they intend to do.

Megaporn down....them's fighting words.

I mean....if I were into that sort of thing.

Originally posted by Fractured.Facade
The copyright warnings have been displayed for a very long time... Ignorance is no excuse for the law.

If there is a product for sale, at a price, and people are taking that product for FREE, that is STEALING.

No matter how you justify it, or defend it, stealing is wrong, and inside of every human is constant awareness of this.

You know right and wrong!

Just because it is available in digital form, doesn't make stealing it okay.... Society is lost when people have no respect for property and rights to it.

Actually no.

If I go to your house, and take your monitor, I'm stealing it.

If I go to your house, and make a copy of your monitor, but you still keep yours, its not stealing, its copying.

Artists should worry about making "art" and having it distribute (making them known) to the largest amount of people possible, not becoming millionaires - they're artists, not millionarists like freakin JayZ and $teven $pielberg

But what is art these days? Its all about the money...

Originally posted by Fractured.Facade
The copyright warnings have been displayed for a very long time... Ignorance is no excuse for the law.

If there is a product for sale, at a price, and people are taking that product for FREE, that is STEALING.

No matter how you justify it, or defend it, stealing is wrong, and inside of every human is constant awareness of this.

You know right and wrong!

Just because it is available in digital form, doesn't make stealing it okay.... Society is lost when people have no respect for property and rights to it.

Ever watch a movie someone else bought? Ever go to a friend's house and watch it, or maybe your parents or spouse bought it and let you watch it with them? Ever listen to a cd in someone else's car that you yourself didn't buy?

Well hey, guess what, you're a thief and you should be incarcerated in prison.

Watching a movie or listening to music you otherwise wouldn't buy is not stealing, because you're not causing any loss of money. Walking into a store and taking a PHYSICAL copy of a movie or a cd IS stealing... Because you're actually taking a product someone else (the company) paid for.

There was already an act in place called the DCMA that allowed companies like megaupload to comply with government requests to remove copywrited material, and from what I understand, they complied and removed files when they were asked to. That is how the system should work.

There's no way you can stop all piracy, and the people who pirate it obviously can't afford it, so it's not like they would purchase it anyways.


It's a total scam, a power grab for money hungry corporations to squeeze every last ounce out of us, and make it so they control everything based on "copywright." You're now guilty until proven guilty.

This is bad news for me. then again, theres always mediafire, rapidshare....

Originally posted by boncho

Indictment Charges Megaupload Site With Piracy

www.nytimes.com

McLEAN, Va. — Federal prosecutors in Virginia say they have shut down one of the world’s largest Internet file-sharing sites, Megaupload.com, and charged its founder and others with violating piracy laws.

An indictment accuses the company of costing copyright holders more than $500 million in lost revenue from pirated films and other content. The indictment was unsealed Thursday, one day after Web sites shut down in protest of two Congressional proposals intended to thwart the online piracy of copyrighted movies and TV programs.

(visit the link for the full news article)


Related News Links:
www.nytimes.com
www.3news.co.nz

what happened to due process? what happened to not being guilty until proven? what theyre doing is illegal and the people who own megaupload could easyly sue them in supreme court because they dont have the right to shut down the site until its been proven of their guilt.

reply to post by FraternitasSaturni


Too, too true art is today considered a commodity. It is quickly becoming completely void of meaning or emotion. To just prove my point look at the decline of punk music. We used to have bands such as the Subhumans, then Bad Religion, then Pennywise, now we have bands like Blink 182 and Sum 41 and they're not even the worst. In my opinion wouldn't the artist want their material to be seen by as many people as possible. Simple economics will tell that free things are disseminated easier than highly regulated and priced things. The true artist only cares about people witnessing the said art, and receiving feedback about that art. Have you ever felt like you could give Justin Timberlake or Rhianna feedback? No. It's because they don't care about it. they already have what they wanted...

Im not a fan of these type of sharing sites, I use a seedbox on various invite only torrent sites then download to my computer from the seebox via ftp client so im never connected to any peers or trackers

reply to post by boncho


NOT SO FAST FEDS!

#OpMegaupload - Every action has an equal and opposite reaction

http:///WEydcBVV

They should expect us

i love this news its perfect timing. The screws are tightening and the faster the better. All the suburban middle class that laughed at the fringe that were yelling about lost liberties and freedoms all of a sudden have the luxury of finding out what their foot tastes like. This is just the start and i cant wait to see all the idiots who said the government would never go too far. I blame the state of the world on the unintelligent drones with no imagination and lack of vision. Maybe next civilization you will take your ass out of your butt's long enough to listen to someone who knows more than you.

On a positive note this just means those of us who want out freedom will simply create our own networks, There will always be a market for sharing and money to be made from the advertising. one door closes another 3 open. They cant stop evolution. Keep sitting on your backsides and hope someone else fixes the problem lol.

Originally posted by THE_PROFESSIONAL
I use megaupload a lot of times along with filesonic, rapidshare, uploading, mihd, and a ton of others. One goes down, 5 will take its place. This pisses me off, megaupload was one of the better service providers..

Shoot, I didn't even know about them and now they are gone?
One thing about file sharing is it gives you a chance to test something before going out and spending sometimes hundreds of dollars on a program you don't want! I did that with Vista, I found out it sucked so then I tried Windows 7, liked it and bought it (after thoroughly testing it).
These site do provide a service for certain users that keeps us from getting ripped off in the stores later.

But, like prostitution it won't go away, they shut it down and one will pop up on a server that allows them (usually far away from the larger countries and their sharing laws.
That's just my humble opinion as I am sure there are many that abuse it.

Well... If They can't pass SOPA/PIPA... Start taking Them down one site at a time. It instills fear (a bit).

I'm sure the losers of the "500 million" are starving in the streets, eh?

EDIT to add: Now that I have read through... I think this is AWESOME. Go Anonymous!

Originally posted by v1rtu0s0
It's a total scam, a power grab for money hungry corporations to squeeze every last ounce out of us, and make it so they control everything based on "copywright." You're now guilty until proven guilty.

Speaking of scams...

MANY mocked, but the money rolled in. For the last few weeks of 2010 Jimmy Wales fixed his piercing gaze on Wikipedia users, imploring them from banner ads to help “the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit” pay its bills for this year. The founder’s plea worked. Wikipedia reached its target of $16m in just 50 days (compared with $8.7m in 67 days at the end of 2009).

This month those pleading banners will return—but with many sets of eyes. Backing up the earnest Mr Wales in the attempt to raise $25m by the year-end will be Brandon Harris, a long-haired programmer wearing a full-sleeved T-shirt and a surly expression, who says he quit his job building “some crappy thing that’s designed to steal money from some kid who doesn’t know it” to work with Wikipedia. 400m unique users every month make it the world’s fifth-biggest website, according to Alexa, an internet research company. It also has a good claim to be the world’s most important provider of non-entertainment content.

SWEET! That is a lot of moolah

www.economist.com...

Originally posted by Amaterasu
Well... If They can't pass SOPA/PIPA... Start taking Them down one site at a time. It instills fear (a bit).

I'm sure the losers of the "500 million" are starving in the streets, eh?

Yeah, they "lost" 500 million... I'm sure most people DL their garbage to see if it's any good and end up deleting it anyways... To bad you can't take your electronic music / videos back once you buy it.

I'm sure it cancels itself out when you consider the rip off it was to begin with.