Step Dad received letter about Downloading?

Kashinoda · 04-12-2008, 23:58

Hi,

Sorry I did have a search and couldn't find any answers.

I recently helped my step-dad set up bit torrent as he's always nagging me to download stuff he needs. Myself I'm a heavy downloader and I've never experienced any letters or anything from Virgin.

He's downloaded only 4 albums he had trouble getting on itunes and received a letter from Virgin/BPI detailing what he downloaded etc. Although the letter didn't give any "warnings" so to speak... it must be noted his laptop didn't have a firewall on it (any difference?)

Obviously he's come to me looking for advise and I told him to stop downloading using torrents for now until I know the score.

Cheers
Kash

**Matt D** · 05-12-2008, 00:07

Virgin (& other ISPs) made a deal with the BPI, regarding what to do with filesharers.

Have a read of this:

http://www.cableforum.co.uk/board/12...-isps-bpi.html

I'd say your step dad had best stop using illegal torrents. If he keeps at it, the next letter may be worse...

broadbandking · 05-12-2008, 09:29

As far as I know you just get the same letter as Virgin Media wont cut you off for this, because if they did they would lose half of the internet subscribers

Milambar · 05-12-2008, 09:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by Matt D

I'd say your step dad had best stop using torrents. If he keeps at it, the next letter may be worse...

Just a small suggestion, perhaps you could say "illegal torrents" or something, because the way you phrased it, it seems as if you are trying to say that all torrents are a bad thing. When some torrents are useful (linux distros), others are important (World of Warcraft patches) and none of those torrents are illegal.

Ernie_C · 05-12-2008, 09:41

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kashinoda

He's downloaded only 4 albums he had trouble getting on itunes.......

This statement is a bit unclear.

If it means he couldn't find these albums on iTunes and decided to download them illegally then he should stop this illegal activity before it gets serious.

If he has done nothing illegal then he should continue to use torrents as it can be used legally for many purposes.

Welshchris · 05-12-2008, 10:24

id like to point out here that these letters are alsos being sent out to people who are not even doing such things as mentioned here.

I know a woman who is in here late 50s, lives alone and is on Virgin 2mb, she uses email to keep in contact with her kids, she is a widow and she wouldnt have a clue about bittorent or peer to peer.

She had a letter stating she had downloaded a number of albums yet she didnt have a clue what they were on about, she isnt even wireless so people couldnt have got in that way either.

**Matt D** · 05-12-2008, 13:47

Quote:

Originally Posted by Milambar

Just a small suggestion, perhaps you could say "illegal torrents" or something, because the way you phrased it, it seems as if you are trying to say that all torrents are a bad thing. When some torrents are useful (linux distros), others are important (World of Warcraft patches) and none of those torrents are illegal.

Good point. Edited.

*sloman* · 05-12-2008, 15:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by Welshchris

id like to point out here that these letters are alsos being sent out to people who are not even doing such things as mentioned here.

I know a woman who is in here late 50s, lives alone and is on Virgin 2mb, she uses email to keep in contact with her kids, she is a widow and she wouldnt have a clue about bittorent or peer to peer.

She had a letter stating she had downloaded a number of albums yet she didnt have a clue what they were on about, she isnt even wireless so people couldnt have got in that way either.

Could this be caused by all the free loaders with cloned modems?

xocemp · 05-12-2008, 17:20

From what I'm told, the letter contains the CM mac address the network card/router mac & the customers IP address. I think it would take some going to do this with a cloned modem.

Welshchris, the lady you know. Did she receive the letter from VM/BPI or Davenport Lyons. I ask because they seem to draw their information from different sources.

Edit
TPB have been "Polluting the evidence"
Polluting the evidence works like this. When a client asks for a list of peers who are downloading the same torrent, the tracker software automatically inserts several “random IP addresses” that are not in the swarm. They are based on existing sub-nets, but might be from people who may not even be aware that BitTorrent exists. This means that the evidence that’s being gathered by anti-piracy companies includes IPs that belong to people that were not downloading the movie or album they are accused of. Perfect deniability, as the people who coded the tracker software explain.
Source
From my reading these tactics are aimed at the technology American pirate-tracking companies use.

Welshchris · 05-12-2008, 18:09

Davenport Lyons.

She said it states its on behalf of Virgin Media which her ISP asking for payment for downloading music albums illegally. She said the letter lists over 15 albums they claim she downloaded and doesnt know a thing about it.

xocemp · 05-12-2008, 18:25

I'd call their bluff Welshchris, and ask for evidence as VM/BPI do CM mac address the network card/router mac & the customers IP address.
Davenport Lyons would seem to be spurious.

Edit
More on Davenport Lyons forensic computer analysts search, more.

Horizon · 05-12-2008, 18:41

Quote:

Originally Posted by broadbandking

As far as I know you just get the same letter as Virgin Media wont cut you off for this, because if they did they would lose half of the internet subscribers

That is until VM launch their own chargeable download service...

**Matt D** · 05-12-2008, 20:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by Welshchris

id like to point out here that these letters are alsos being sent out to people who are not even doing such things as mentioned here.

I know a woman who is in here late 50s, lives alone and is on Virgin 2mb, she uses email to keep in contact with her kids, she is a widow and she wouldnt have a clue about bittorent or peer to peer.

She had a letter stating she had downloaded a number of albums yet she didnt have a clue what they were on about, she isnt even wireless so people couldnt have got in that way either.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Welshchris

Davenport Lyons.

She said it states its on behalf of Virgin Media which her ISP asking for payment for downloading music albums illegally. She said the letter lists over 15 albums they claim she downloaded and doesnt know a thing about it.

Ah, Davenport Lyons...

We have a thread running on that already, if you could keep further posts on it to that please. Separate - yet related - issue to the VM/BPI deal.

http://www.cableforum.co.uk/board/25...ort-lyons.html

Have a read. She wouldn't be the first apparently innocent person targeted by DL...

Welshchris · 05-12-2008, 20:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by xocemp

I'd call their bluff Welshchris, and ask for evidence as VM/BPI do CM mac address the network card/router mac & the customers IP address.
Davenport Lyons would seem to be spurious.

Edit
More on Davenport Lyons forensic computer analysts search, more.

to be honest i am expecting one as i think someone had been using my wireless connection at night without me knowing, i woke one night and saw modem lights going mental and as i explained on another post it wasnt anything on my PC like updates etc. A few days later my antivirus went wild and it found a net login and 2 trojans on my PC that Trojan scanner and AVG Pro had missed only the day previous.