Report Shows That Employees Get Around IT security

April 30, 2008 by Yonah · Comments Off
Filed under: Announcements & Events

A report by Firewall vender Palo Alto shows that employees resort to some common tricks to get around IT security measures. Among these very popular is using proxy scripts in order to evade filters and using online p2p to download and install unsupported applications.

Palo Alto identifies CGIProxy and KProxy as two common proxy scripts. Basically, these sites are used to surf outside the web filter and have access to content blocked by IT. Of course, this is already an old issue, IT having to constantly supervise logs at work.The report also names web-based file sharing, such as YouSendit and MediaMax, as means of exchanging files. Palo Alto also reports that more than 90% of the networks subjected to survey had P2P applications installed and running.

Naturally, Palo Alto comes with a solution for these problems and a price for it. Items like proxy usage, P2P usage, Google Apps usage, streaming media, and other restricted access don’t require need a costly hardware to prevent. Though many IT shops have taken this measure, is the fact that after being installed these are often ignored.

If you just install a firewall or appliance like Websense and then forget about it, well, it won’t be of much help. However, policy enforcement can be hard, and, of course, reading logs and updating web filters are not really a priority in most IT offices.

There is yet another solution – download a FREE log filter and check out the keywords. If you use these to emphasize only important log data it will save you time, and lets you better observe what‘s happening on the network.

Tags: CGIProxy, file-sharing, firewall, IT, IT security, KProxy, p2p, p2p filter, p2p filtering

uTorrent’s Popularity Boosts

April 29, 2008 by Yonah · Comments Off
Filed under: Announcements & Events, File-Sharing Programs, Networks & Services, Tops

The P2P scene is subjected to constant change – there’s new data indicating that the number of uTorrent users across the world has more than doubled since 2007, TorrentFreak reports.

The data we offer here were collected by PC Pitstop (the “subjects” of the study were more than a million PCs -Windows only-)

Some months ago uTorrent was surpassing Azureus as the most installed BitTorrent application, and it seems its ascension didn’t stop since while LimeWire has been suffering a decrease in popularity.

LimeWire descents as uTorrent goes up

The statistics published by TorrentFreak show that:

From December 2006 to December 2007 LimeWire lost approximately 25% of its user base. By the end of 2007, 17% of all PCs in the United States had LimeWire installed, compared to 23.3% last year. Similar drops occurred in Europe, Latin America, and the rest of the world. The most loyal LimeWire users come from Australia, where the install rate is 27%, only a slight decrease compared to the 30.4% in 2006.

On account of uTorrent’s constant growing, other BitTorrent clients like Azureus and BitComet are gradually losing ground. Currently, Azureus and BitComet enjoy an average install rate of 1.4% and 1.7% respectively.

The graph below shows The BitTorrent client as the most popular in Europe (11.6%)

What’s popular where?

Let’s address the matter of the regional differences in popularity of peer-to-peer applications for a moment; Studies reveal that uTorrent has far more fans in Europe (11.6%) than in the USA (5.1%). At the same time Limewire is preferred by Aussies (27.0%) and Canadians (27.2%), but doesn’t do that well in South America this being Emule’s territory where the program is installed on 16% of the computers compared to only 1% in the United States and 3% in Europe.

How P2P Market share looks like so far in 2008

Here’s another chart showing the market share of the different file-sharing programs since the beginning of this year (most of the data are gathered from US participants where LimeWire is undeniable the winner).

p2p marketshare 2008

However, we should clarify that install rates do not necessarily represent usage. Having a P2P application installed and actually using it can be a different thing.

Given the amount of traffic that each P2P client accounts for, uTorrent would be the one to sit at the top.

Tags: Azureus, BitTorrent, emule, file-sharing, file-sharing program, limewire, p2p, p2p client, p2p market share, p2p top, top, torrent, uTorrent

AT&T Plays Innocent to P2P Traffic Shaping Accusations

April 28, 2008 by Yonah · Comments Off
Filed under: Announcements & Events, Entertainment Industry, Legal P2P News & Issues

AT&T.jpg The subject of peer-to-peer “traffic shaping” is hot as ever. In a comment made on Friday AT&T declared to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that it did not attempt to throttle back p2p traffic by generating commands to slow down file transfers, as Vuze said it can prove.

As we informed you last week ,Vuze, an application based on the peer-to-peer Azureus BitTorrent protocol, is determined to expose the interference with the p2p traffic that that the networks of the eight biggest broadband providers—among which AT&T—practice on a regular basis and in this respect it submitted its study to the FCC.

“At a minimum, more investigation is required to determine whether these resets are happening in the ordinary course of business or whether they are the kind of throttling practices which target specific applications and/or protocols” to the detriment of P2P users, Vuze stated.

In defense AT&T vice president of Internet and network systems research Charles Kalmanek, has sent a letter to Vuze CEO Gilles BianRosa, saying that p2p resets can be the consequences of different local network events, such as outages, attacks, reconfigurations or overall trends in Internet usage.

“AT&T does not use ‘false reset messages’ to manage its network,” continued Kalmanek.

He also rendered Vuze action as unfounded and misleading and suggested that industry forums like the Distributed Computing Industry Association would be more indicated for a fair debate.

On the other hand Comcast, unlike AT&T, has admitted messing with P2P upstream traffic to avoid losing bandwidth but has finally promised to behave and change its policy by the end of this year.

The FCC is currently looking into the matter to see if the operator’s bandwidth management practices have been fair. Chairman Kevin Martin condemned these practices and called them “blunt means to reduce peer-to-peer traffic.”

Tags: AT&T, BitTorrent, Comcast, internet, p2p, p2p traffic, traffic interference, traffic shapping, Vuze plug-in

Metallica Pro File-Sharing?

April 27, 2008 by Yonah · Comments Off
Filed under: Announcements & Events, Entertainment Industry

The four horsemen are back to the attention of p2p community. In a recent interview they revealed the new approach now with the next album which promises "everything in terms of possibilities with the Internet " for the fans.
They also said that the idea came tot them "observing Radiohead and Trent Reznor."

2000 was a very “loud” year in anti-file-sharing voicing due to Metallica’s stand against it. After finding out that a demo of its song "I Disappear," which they were planning to release on Mission: Impossible II soundtrack, was being aired on radio, the band began the chase. They discovered not only that the song was available on Napster but also that the band’s entire catalogue was available as well. What followed established Metallica as one of the most vocal critics of file-sharing but it also cost it many devoted fans (who just didn’t understand the famous band’s determination of not letting some potential money go) as the band sued Napster for copyright infringement.

The story ended in 2001 with Napster agreeing to identify and block access to files that artists do make available.

With the digital era taking over, views might have changed and in a recent interview with Rolling Stone at a "Record Store Day," an event whose purpose is to celebrate physical music retailers, Metallica seemed ready than ever to consider selling digital music:

RS: You were one of the first artists to sue over copyright infringement and voice concerns over aspects of downloading. Eight years later, with bands like Radiohead embracing the Net and yet charting, how has your stance changed, if at all?

M:We have FLACs and MP3s for sale. It was never about downloading per se. We have the Vault where you can download shows from twenty years ago for free, full-on and it’s been there for years. You can download recent shows days after they happen for cost. Back in the day there was a much bigger question about "on whose terms?" We said, "Wait a minute, it should be about the artist." Then all hell broke loose and we sat on the sidelines for a while. We’ve always been fiercely independent and controlling; sometimes to a fault. That’s why we exist and why all these people show up.

Next Metallica emphasized its ever actual focus on "independence" which, it says, motivated its decision to sue Napster eight years ago as it was "never about downloading per se". Further on, James & Co. revealed that their latest album, (expected later this year) is the last it has under contract with Warner Records. Then the band hinted at future plans that include "… looking at how we can embrace everything."

"We want to be as free a players as possible," they went on in the interview."We’ve been observing Radiohead and Trent Reznor and in twenty-seven years or however long it takes for the next record, we’ll be looking forward to everything in terms of possibilities with the Internet."

Given that record companies and retailers such as Apple are cutting quite a share from the profits (the artists only get 10 cents on the dollar for each song or album sold) it’s unsurprisingly that an approach in the way of Radiohead or Trent Reznor is preferable. After all, it’s just…fight fire with fire, right?

Looking forward to Metallica’s future say in this but especially to its upcoming album, here’s "One", the first video from those who once used to Ride the Lightening :

Tags: Apple, copyright, file-sharing, infringement, internet, metallica, mp3, Napster, p2p

Pirate Bay Investigator Rewarded by Warner Bros.?

April 25, 2008 by Yonah · Comments Off
Filed under: Announcements & Events, Entertainment Industry, Legal P2P News & Issues

There was report a few days ago about an important “player” in The Pirate Bay case (an investigator of the case) being hired by Warner Bros. that gave way to Pirate Bay.jpg rumors.

When police officer (IT forensics) Jim Keyzer, proudly made known last week his new job at Warner Bros on his Facebook profile, seemingly he didn’t take into consideration the fact that there were lots of Pirate Bay followers watching him closely. After realizing his boo-boo Keyzer hurried to delete his profile but The Pirate Bay was already ahead of him with a press release on the strange job shift.

Pirate Bay’s Peter Sunde made a comment upon the officer’s new “success” :

He [Keyzer] confirmed that he is an employee there {Warner Bros]and we can’t see it in any other way than this being the reward for work well done from the new employer of the police, the entertainment industry.

However, fresh information would come into light in the following days. It was confirmed that Keyzer was only hired by Warner Bros. for a period of six months and that he’s actually keeping his present job. Naturally, this only reinforced the belief that the job at the movie studio in fact rewarded him for having investigated The Pirate Bay.

As a reply,Warner Bros. stated that Keyzer was not employed or paid by the movie studio during his activity on the case and that the allegation that the officer pursued his own interest throughout his investigation is not founded.

However, it wouldn’t be a first for the copyright industry to recruit its file-sharing investigators from the police, and also to start negotiating for the job despite the fact that the investigations were in their development.

Prosecutor Hakan Roswall explained that the reason why the industry is so keen on hiring men from the police force is that these “exceptionally skilled people.”

Now, we can’t help asking – should The Pirate Bay do the same and counter-act the record industry’s strategy by also employing an IT-forensics specialist from the police?

Hmm…

Tags: anti-piracy, copyright, Facebook, file-sharing, legal, p2p investigation, piracy, The Pirate Bay, Warner Bros.