Wonderful message I woke up to

Littlefoot Fan · **on:** June 26, 2011, 10:28:05 AM

Yea seriously. I download japanese subbed animes, big whoop. There are english dubbed dvd sets you can buy in this country of these animes, but I only like the original japanese ones, which you obviously cannot buy anywhere in this country. And frankly, I don't feel like finding a way around this, at least not any time soon, because with my luck, it won't work, and they'll end up being asinine enough to permanently disable my service.

landbeforetimelover · **Reply #1 on:** June 26, 2011, 06:05:10 PM

LOL. That's why you need to use private proxies. Free ones suck and don't do anything to protect you. I've got connections with a good provider in the Ukraine if you're interested. In fact, I'm using one of his proxies to access GOF this very moment. I'm also downloading the Lord of the Rings trilogy at about 1.5Mbps through Utorrent. His proxies are only $2 apiece when you buy 10 or more. DEFINITELY worth it. I currently have a few hundred for my Internet Marketing ventures as well as just internet surfing/downloading.

ISP's are definitely getting more serious about this, so it's time to either protect yourself or get flushed down the toilet. Back before I got private proxies I used to get a notice from Comcast at least once a month. But I haven't gotten so much as a peep in years now.

As for advice in your current situation, I'm not familiar with COX. They may install some sort of spyware on your computer to make sure you've removed the offending file, but I think it's unlikely. I recommend the following steps:

1. Move the file to an external hard drive or flash drive and remove it from the computer.
2. Rename the said file.
3. Reactivate your internet connection.
4. Purchase private proxies and USE THEM 24/7!
5. Put the file back onto your computer again, but put it somewhere else. Also, encrypt all of your files and put all copyrighted material onto an external hard drive.

DarkHououmon · **Reply #2 on:** June 26, 2011, 06:48:56 PM

How much are private proxies?

Serris · **Reply #3 on:** June 26, 2011, 07:07:18 PM

Do you have a computer with no internet connection?

If so, store all your questionable things there.

landbeforetimelover · **Reply #4 on:** June 26, 2011, 08:08:49 PM

Quote from: DarkHououmon,Jun 26 2011 on 04:48 PM

How much are private proxies?

GOOD one's (the only kind that actually do jack shit) run about $50/month for 10 proxies. That's why I love my guy from the Ukraine so much. $20/month for 10 proxies is MUCH better, especially when you're buying hundreds of them like I am. His proxies are on a dedicated server. You get one dedicated server and 10 proxies for $20/month. This means you can put about 10Mbps through the proxies with UNLIMITED bandwidth! I don't even do a Google search without a private proxy anymore, let alone download any "copyrighted" material. The internet is no longer the same safe anonymous place it was 10+ years ago. Bastard corporations control everything and you can't even upload a video to YouTube anymore without getting sued.

There are basically two Internets nowadays; the public one controlled and censured and the behind the scenes hacker kind with freedom. If you don't get into the good internet now, you'll never be able to. No one is going to take sympathy on you and give you a free ticket once things get really really bad. And trust me, things are going to get TERRIBLE. Much worse than they are now. You can either be like the rest of the sheep and just take it up the a$$ or you can fight for your rights to be one of the people that will still have freedom and a decent internet. Private proxies are just a start. Soon we'll have China like censorship here in the US and you'll have to hack your own connection just to see what the companies don't want you to see. It's going to be hell on the internet, but I'll be fine. But the rest of you people haven't got a prayer unless you either have help or figure it out on your own.

Kor · **Reply #5 on:** June 26, 2011, 10:57:46 PM

Certain programs like Peerblock may help also.

landbeforetimelover · **Reply #6 on:** June 26, 2011, 11:34:48 PM

Never rely on stupid little programs like Peerblock. The government is always watching out for stuff like that and since it's popular, it's easy to spot. If you're actually caught downloading copyrighted stuff and you have something like Peerblock installed, it's just more evidence against you that you knew what you were doing was "wrong"

: and just didn't give a shit and instead tried to cover it up. The Gov't is really serious about this these days. If you don't know what the hell you're doing, don't press your luck. Right now private proxies are a pretty adequate defense, but there's no telling when that will change.

DarkHououmon · **Reply #7 on:** June 26, 2011, 11:55:14 PM

I have no idea what you're talking about, Landbeforetimelover. I've been using PeerBlock for a long time now, and it's always proven useful to me. Just because you don't think it works doesn't mean that it doesn't work. Besides, private proxies may not always work either. How do you know that the government hasn't come up with a way to watch you through that? I seriously doubt it's foolproof. You might think it is, but at some point in the future, don't be surprised if the government finds a way to bypass all your private proxies to see what you're doing, as you claim they are.

Sorry if I offended anyone. Just trying to make a point. Personally I'll stick with PeerBlock. I don't have the money to invest in private proxies which may not even work for me at all.

Truttle · **Reply #8 on:** June 27, 2011, 12:23:36 AM

What I think might have happened is that a specific virus may have been downloaded along with his video. There are a lot of risks from downloaded illegal stuff from strange places on the net. Stopping it from happening and closing sites is one thing. But not looking into people's computers. That's illegal and there is no law that allows the government to do that.

landbeforetimelover · **Reply #9 on:** June 27, 2011, 12:51:27 AM

You're right. There's no system that's completely secure or foolproof. But thankfully they'll pick off the people that either have no protection or use common tools like Peerblock way before they pick off people like me that actually know what they're doing. Going through multiple private proxies helps keep you safe and secure while online. I've been using torrents and p2p programs for almost 10 years now and I've never had a problem once I started using private proxies. The weak and defenseless always get eaten first. That's the law of nature. Fortunately I know how to adequately protect myself. Private proxies aren't my only defense by far. Peerblock is far better than nothing, but it shouldn't give you any real peace of mind.

jansenov · **Reply #10 on:** June 27, 2011, 04:27:05 AM

Damn, Littlefoot Fan. It was only a matter of time before ISPs in democracies started doing this sort of thing. This is the reason why I hope cloud computing will never come to life. Although the big players are pushing for it, calling it "cheap", "modern", "efficient", and "sexy". This may sound radical, but I fear only large companies will be able to buy storage devices in the future. I don't have any problems with my ADSL connection now. I can do whatever I want. However, there's no telling if there's a file about this computer's activities somewhere. I will consider your advices, Austin, if push comes to shove. I'm fortunate that Croatian Internet usually lags 5-10 years behind American Internet.

Serris · **Reply #11 on:** June 27, 2011, 01:43:31 PM

My ISP doesn't give a s--- about what I do as long it is not totally outrageous (IE stealing peoples' identities, cracking systems, spreading viruses etc.)

It seems that they have chosen to "look the other way"when it comes to downloads and stuff.

And of course, once I am done, I wipe it out (not delete).

DarkHououmon · **Reply #12 on:** June 28, 2011, 08:23:20 AM

I do agree that one should take steps to protect themselves, however they should use means that they feel work for them. Just because someone suggests private proxies and not to rely on "stupid little programs like PeerBlock" (which I feel was going a bit too far) doesn't mean that's the only way, nor does it mean programs like PeerBlock are truly useless.

There's more than one way to protect one's computer. There is no such thing as a "true, one way" of doing anything. You can ask for advice, but there's no reason to treat what they say like it's the only truth. As I said, there's many programs and different techniques available to help people protect their computers.

One example of a type of program that may be useful is browsers that allow you to surf the web anonymously. Yes they do exist. PeerBlock, on the other hand, blocks out IP addresses and does offer relatively quick updates. I never use my computer without it turned on. If you don't think programs like these work, then okay you don't have to use them. My point is there's never just "one true way" to do something on the computer.

My best advice I can give in this situation is, before deciding what you're going to do (whether it be using a program or a private proxy), do some research on both and see which one you feel works best and makes you feel safer. Don't rely simply on what one person tells you. Even any program I suggest may not be for everyone.

landbeforetimelover · **Reply #13 on:** June 28, 2011, 10:06:27 AM

Here's a question for you. If Peerblock actually works, why haven't they taken it down yet? They took down Limewire and plenty of other services. The truth is they like programs like Peerblock because it gives people a false sense of security. Even with private proxies and a million other things to protect you, don't do stupid stuff. Wait at least 3-6 months after something comes out to download it. They're always watching the new and hot stuff. Get a membership to a private torrent website with (preferably) a private tracker. Run all downloads through multiple threads of multiple private proxies. Put all copyrighted material on an external hard drive and encrypt the contents. Keep an eye out for suspicious programs and services that are running in the background of your computer. Or better yet, get a cheap computer you can load Linux on and do all your downloading using that computer. Things aren't nearly as simple as they once were. If you go downloading stuff without protection, especially new stuff, you're gonna get busted. Oh, and get a hardware firewall and lock it down good. Set up a monitoring program to monitor all incoming connections. Check them all carefully. Soon very few people will pirate anymore because it will become so dangerous for those that don't know all the tricks.

Campion1 · **Reply #14 on:** June 28, 2011, 12:04:23 PM

Sounds like some spooky Orwellian shit! But.. No. Sorry, but no. People will still break the law, and people will still continue/find ways to illegally download something. They'll also find ways to illegally sell something. Or Snort it. Or purchase it. etc. I have friends who have used the most basic programs (limewire, frostwire, random infected music sites, etc..) who haven't been busted in last five years. I guess it's working for them because they like them downloading music and movies too, huh?

DarkHououmon · **Reply #15 on:** June 28, 2011, 02:03:54 PM

One program I might try out is Hotspot Shield. It's supposed to anonymize (sp?) your internet usage. A friend of mine uses it and is satisfied with it.

As for a private proxy, I might try it out at some point, but not now because I don't think my parents would approve of it. I do hope to move out soon, though, so whenever I move out, I could try, depending on the price and availability.

Petrie85 · **Reply #16 on:** June 28, 2011, 04:20:24 PM

Sorry to hear this I have no information to give to you.