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News Scientist
Interest in anonymous internet file-sharing networks has surged since the music industry revealed plans to sue individuals illegally offering copyrighted songs to other users.
Ian Clarke, who coordinates development of one of the best known anonymous file-sharing systems, Freenet, told New Scientist that traffic to the project’s web site had surged since the RIAA announced its plans.
“We have certainly noticed an increase in interest. Our website has received a three-fold increase in usage,” says Clarke. “But it is difficult to tell how much downloads [of our software] have increased as there are a variety of ways in which we distribute it and not all are trackable.”
Many computer enthusiasts have been stunned by the RIAA’s heavy-handed tactics. Julian Midgely, of the UK’s Campaign for Digital Rights, says the industry risks driving users onto networks that are more difficult to police.
“Until the RIAA realises that the solution is to offer its own affordable, on-line download services, it’s doomed to play a futile game of whack-a-mole with ever more sophisticated file trading networks,” he told New Scientist.
File-sharing networks link up users’ hard drives across the internet to create a massive searchable library of free music and video. The RIAA blames file-trading for decreasing music sales, but critics accuse the industry of failing to adapt and find ways of compensating artists for downloads. They argue that the success of Apple’s iTunes service, which offers song downloads for 99 cents each with few restrictions on usage, has proved that paid-for services can work.
The most popular programs, such as Kazaa, Morpheus and Grokster, are configured to make finding and sharing files as efficient as possible but make no attempt to protect users’ identities.
Freenet, by contrast, provides completely untraceable sharing by dividing files up and distributing them at random across different computers. Requests for files are also designed not to reveal where they originally came from. One drawback is that the system has traditionally been slow and difficult to use. But a new and improved version could help solve these issues.
Instead of randomly asking computers on the network for a file, the new Freenet system determines which are most likely to find the data fastest. Each computer is assigned a score based on its history of data retrieval – how long it takes to respond to requests, how long it takes to transfer files and how reliable those downloads are. The one that scores highest is contacted first.
Clarke says it is a self-optimising system, as computers that become overwhelmed with requests stop scoring highly and get used less. Some existing file-sharing programs have also begun to add features designed to provide some degree of anonymity.
The latest version of Morpheus, for example, can be configured to route traffic through proxy servers that will provide an additional layer of protection against outside monitoring. Kazaa Lite, a derivative of the Kazaa program, now comes with code that blocks computers thought to belong to music industry snoops from accessing a user’s hard drive.
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