Fingerprinting P2P Pirates
Monty Solomon
By John Borland
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
February 20, 2003, 4:00 AM PT
For months, the digital equivalent of a postal censor has been sorting
through virtually all file-swapping traffic on the University of
Wyoming's network, quietly noting every trade of an Eminem song or
"Friends" episode.
The technology, provided by Los Gatos, Calif., company Audible Magic,
isn't yet blocking individual file trades. But that's the next step.
As the company begins testing its service with more universities,
corporations and small Internet service providers during next few weeks
and months, this peer-to-peer monitoring and blocking technology
threatens to open the next front in the online piracy wars.
With the capacity to look inside every bit of data that flows over a
network--whether it's part of a song being illegally traded or a
personal e-mail--this new generation of antipiracy technology is sure
to prove controversial. But some administrators at universities and
corporations--deluged by peer-to-peer traffic that continues to
overwhelm their networks--say they're ready for this sweeping step.
http://news.com.com/2100-1023-985027.html