Peer 2 Peer

The last few months have seen some really interesting moves in the whole peer to peer culture. The RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) has been slowly tightening its grip on how people can share music. The massive python has squeezed peer to peer networks and their members since the beginning.

The whole mess started in May of 1999 when Shawn Fanning started a “little” service called Napster. The instant massive popularity of Napster forced the RIAA’s hand. They sued Napster on December 7th, 1999. Since that time, the RIAA has been on a mission to squash the insurgency. At first, the RIAA went after major online brokers like Napster to stop the tide. Once those services had been culled, they moved onto major nodes of activity. These were individuals who were important players on the Peer to Peer (P2P) networks like Kazaa, Grokster, Morpheus, etc. On May 2, 2003, the RIAA reached settlements with four college students. Though the fines were small, the message that they brought was much more important. That message was that the RIAA would prosecute anyone, big or small, who engaged in music swapping activity. It seemed like the RIAA had effectively made the offenders run for the hills. But those victory cries were soon drowned out by a disturbing trend.

If you have been monitoring the music scene, you will have noticed a strong rise in independent artists. What is the cause of such a move? Well, in large part, it is the artist herself. Artists have become disenchanted with the strategies and priorities of large recording companies. What they see is a massive disconnect between music companies, the artists, and their audience. And that has left a massive vacuum. But that’s for another article. Let’s focus our attention on the P2P landscape.

Recently, the RIAA sued Limewire for $150,000 for each song that was downloaded as part of that service. That sum, as you might have guessed, is astronomical. Limewire has now counter sued the RIAA for an interesting claim. They are claiming that the RIAA is acting in a monopolistic fashion. This indicates a total shift in thinking and strategy. Most P2P networks have just fallen by the wayside. They fight for a while, but then they bend the knee before the RIAA. But Limewire is not defending. Limewire is now going on the offensive against the monolith. And how we just love underdogs.

But even if the RIAA wins this battle, haven’t they lost bigger ones in the process? Will what we’re seeing in the independent music movement translate to the consumer? Or will the consumer just turn a deaf ear to the position? I guess that’s all up to you.

In the early days of the Internet, a number of payment methods such as eCash and eMoney were developed to provide new means of paying for services and products online. Many of these alternative payment methods failed, as they did not perform well against the current dominant payment method, credit cards.
Despite being well-intentioned, these new payments methods are often unable to address the key requirements of consumers, merchants, issuers and processors. But credit cards are not the best option for Internet payments. The messaging standards and legacy systems that process credit and debit card transactions were, in many cases, developed several decades ago - well before the Internet had become a daily occurrence for consumers.
These debit and credit card processing systems were set up in an era of expensive bandwidth and limited computer power. They require costly, dedicated single-purpose communication networks, point-of-sale (PoS) devices, automatic teller machines(ATMs) and magnetically-encoded plastic cards that need a standardized messaging format in order to function and interoperate.
This legacy has imposed many limitations on Internet-based payments. Traditional payment methods such as credit and debit cards are not suited to cope with and adapt to new forms of consumer interactivity and authentication. The Internet requires an open secure payment method that transacts in realtime - the legacy payment methods only partially transact in real-time.
Also, in many cases there is no finality of payment such that funds can be rescinded if someone intercepts a card number and uses it to make a purchase. Many modifications and workarounds have been employed to extend the current payment infrastructure to cope with the new requirements imposed by the Internet, but these changes have been slow and have not addressed the underlying problems.
Yet things are changing. There are several new payment methods that may challenge the dominant position of credit cards. These emerging payment methods are changing the way we pay or send money to each other. Person-to-Person P2P) and surrogate card numbers have the potential to fill the missing links for Internet payments.
Person-to-Person Payments (P2P)
P2P payments are the new frontier in Internet payments. By replacing cumbersome cash and check payments with electronic money transfers, P2P providers such as Pay Pal and c2it have created a new payment segment that continues to grow rapidly.
P2P is free and easy to use, and allows for multiple payment options, but, as PayPal has found, pure P2P transactions are very small in number and most transaction volumes come from the auction space. Although auctions drive most P2P payments, this payment form rapidly diversifying into various consumer and small business applications such as cross-border money transfers and recurring payments.
In the early adopter phase of P2P, we will see schemes that work and schemes that fail. This is already happening in the US where some large financial institutions have discontinued their P2P services. They have struggled to find a return on investment (ROI) since consumers baulk at being made to pay for the service.
This is changing because P2P has both B2C and B2B appeal - the ROI from B2C and B2B payments has the potential to generated more rapidly than from B2Conly applications like eWallets and Mobile Payments.
Promising P2P Segments
One of the most promising P2P segments is international money transfers. A key target market for international P2P money transfer services is workers from labour-exporting countries around the world who send their earnings to their families back home. The remittance industry can generally be categorized into formal and informal channels. On top of the commercial banks, the formal channels also comprise non-bank financial institutions that cater specifically to the money transfer market, such as Western Union and MoneyGram.
However, it is the informal channels that account for the bulk of remittances, particularly those from low-income migrants. P2P can bring some of the unrecorded remittance back to the banks which allow the migrating workers to open an account and offer them the ability to make a P2P transaction from an ATM or a web-based PC.
However, the initial P2P providers face significant fraud risks as their systems are tied to a credit card, which may impact the long-term viability of these business models. One player, CertaPay in Canada, has taken P2P in a different direction, by integrating its services with the banks. The service, known as Email Money Transfer, is a transfer sent directly from a consumer’s bank account to anyone with an email address and a Canadian financial institution bank account.
The Internet e-mail carries the notice of the pending transfer and instructions to collect the money, while the banks provide the ability to move the money securely using reliable payment networks already in place. The banks validate their customers and manage the settlement process, and CertaPay manages the Email Money Transfer service. CertaPay facilitates the email notifications, maintains the Email Money Transfer records, and provides the option to deposit an Email Money Transfer using an electronic fund transfer.
Surrogate card numbers
Surrogate card numbers represent a solution which is based on traditional payment networks, utilizing the credit card companies’ traditional schemes by issuing surrogate numbers. The consumer uses the surrogate number to make purchases on the Internet. The surrogate number can be configured by the consumer so that it is used for a single transaction, only at specific websites, and limited to a specific time, date or amount. If a fraud is committed against a surrogate number, the fraud is limited to the surrogate number alone.
The surrogate number takes advantages of the legacy payment networks and is deployed by the card issuer. To take advantage of the surrogate number, the consumer needs to be registered for the service with their issuer. The service remains within the bank’s Internet banking application; a consumer can set up a surrogate card and make the source of funding a credit card, debit card or a bank account. We are now starting to see consumers use surrogate numbers instead of their debit cards in combination with their debit card PIN.
This means that they can carry out a debit card transaction online - by entering a surrogate number, authentication takes place and the issuer debits the cardholder’s account. This payment method allows for safer purchases online, as the surrogate card number used is controlled by the user. This is not a pure-play Internet payment, but will be continue to be used until better authentication and payments methods arrive.
Conclusion
To get to the market quickly, banks will in the short term benefit from partnering with established P2P vendors to achieve fast time-to-market. However, banks are soon likely to develop their own solutions. Banks can also establish the first building block in mPayments by providing prepaid top-up to customers a small-scale move to gain mind-share the mobile payment arena without stretching their budgets.

Peer to peer file sharing systems, otherwise known as P2P, connect people directly together on the internet. Some systems are true networked systems, in that there is a central server which acts as a central point to which all traffic is directed then distributed to the clients.

An excellent example of this is the original Napster. When someone wanted to download a particular track, they would enter it into a request box, much as with P2P software, then Napster would inform them what sites had the track or movie, then facilitate the download between two computers. Computer A would pass to Napster who would pass to computer B. In other words, if your joined Napster, you allowed the music files on your hard drive to be copied to Napster’s central server, then on to another of Napster’s customer’s hard drive. OpenNap was another, which copied Napster’s way of making money through file exchange.

However, this central server is what destroyed Napster, at least for a while. Once the central server could be identified as the single source of this file exchange, it was forced to close. And once the server closed, the whole system broke down. The Napster team eventually tugged their forelocks and began to operate using payment per track systems which developed to the Napster you now know, which is owned by software company Roxio.

Peer to peer file sharing took over Napster’s original role, but extended it from simply sharing music tracks. P2P provides an opportunity for new artists to have their work heard without the high costs of cutting disks or CDs and trying to promote them through other media. The beauty of P2P is that no moguls can take it over and dictate who and who cannot have their original music heard.

The difference between Peer to peer and Napster is that there is no central server with P2P. Every user of the software is connected directly to every other user. If you download music using a peer to peer system, you can be downloading from the hard drive of your next door neighbor, or somebody on the other side of the world. You will never know, unless you opt for a higher grade system. There is no central server to be shut down since you are in direct contact, so it cannot be stopped, even if made illegal.

P2P file sharing software is mainly sourced from the Gnutella design, and most companies that offer such services look very much the same. However, some have extended this to offer the bells and whistles that set them apart, such as faster downloads and the ability to converse with those you are connected to. There are other benefits to be gained from these subscription sites such as connections to other P2P movie and games download sites.

If you do not have burning software such as Nero, you can also download the software required to burn the files to CD or DVD directly from the software websites you are subscribing to.

The major players in the free peer to peer networks are Gnutella and Bittorrent. They work differently but both provide high quality downloads. If you want to take it a step forward, the subscription download programs, where you make a single life payment, can provide more functionality and interactivity as well as faster download speeds. Beware of free trials since these tend to come with adware and spyware, and the reason they are free, to my mind, is that the software companies are either using their own spyware, or receiving a payment for including it in the free package.

You can’t complain about what get free, but you can about what you pay for, which is why free software is not always the best option. The same, however, can be said of some regular or life subscription sites. Before you pay try the contact numbers. If you get no reply, either from email or phone, then don’t go near them.

All in all, assuming that you keep legal with copyright, peer to peer file sharing networks are the best way to listen to new music from up and coming artists, and to see movies made by new producers, directors and actors. It is also a great way to get some old games that you have never played before. I should also warn you not to download the current charts!

When I was growing up, I enjoyed playing Monopoly and particularly enjoyed handling the bank. At one point in my career, I worked for a bank. But until recently, I never thought in terms of being the bank. That all changed when I discovered Person-to-person (P2P) Lending on an eBay-like website where people (”borrowers”) post a request for an unsecured loan of up to $25,000 at a maximum interest rate they’re willing to pay. Then other people, like me (”lenders”), place bids in a reverse Dutch auction, for the amount and rate they’re willing to lend, usually for a piece of the loan (at least $50).

On one site, borrowers provide their annual income so a debt to income ratio can be determined and displayed. A credit check is run and a borrower’s credit grade is also determined and displayed. The site has over 1,200 loans listed currently. They range from $5,000 at 4.75% interest for home remodeling (1 bid) to $3,000 at 29% interest to consolidate credit card debt (12 bids).

Lenders create a link to their bank account, transfer funds to the auction site, and begin placing bids. When a fully-funded listing ends, a single loan is created from bids with the lowest rates. The site automates much of the operation for the lender including withdrawing monthly payments from the borrower’s bank account and distributing them proportionately to the lenders’ accounts.

Not every loan request will get fully funded, but those that do have an opportunity to receive a loan at a rate that’s potentially better than a number of other alternatives. Jim Bruene from Online Banking Report predicts that within five years the total market for person-to-person lending in the U.S could surpass 100,000 loans annually, worth more than $1 billion.

P2P Online Lending can benefit investors by allowing them to invest directly in other people and diversify their own investments. The site mentioned earlier reported “While 73.6% became lenders to achieve higher ROI than with alternative investments (an expected response), over 53% responded that the ability to help others while earning a return was a driver in their decision to become a lender.”

If you’re looking to diversify your investments beyond stocks, bonds, CDs and real estate, consider P2P Lending, help others, and be the bank.

The legal use of P2P movie downloads is currently under scrutiny, as the movie companies bare their teeth and growl. However, they are a bit like toothless dogs, who can bark but whose bites are next to useless as a weapon.

At the moment the illegal use of P2P file sharing software to download copyrighted movies outnumbers legal downloads by around 5 to 1. There is very little likelihood of an individual being prosecuted for doing so for personal use, although they are taking more of chance if they are downloading with the intention of selling the pirated movies.

Much has been written about the distinction between legal and illegal downloads, and this distinction is still not fully understood. In fact there is no such thing as an ‘illegal download site’ since peer-to-peer file sharing is not illegal. Hence, the software that allows it is also not illegal. What IS illegal is the use of such software to download movies and music) that is protected by copyright, and that includes just about every commercial movie currently available online.

However, there are many movies that are legal to download because they are now in the public domain. Included among these are: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1916), Bloodlust (1961), Charade (1963), Cyrano de Bergerac (1950), the 1940 Flash Gordon series, Gulliver’s Travels (1939), Hercules (1958) and Sons of Hercules (1963), Two Women (1960), The 39 Steps (1935), Little Shop of Horrors (1960) and McClintock! (1963).

There are thousands more, but you won’t find any current blockbusters among them. However, it is debatable whether or not movies broadcast on TV should be any more illegal to download than to video them. The major problem that the movie companies are facing are illegal downloads of newly released movies by people that mass produce copies and sell them illegally. It is not so much the school kids downloading a movie to watch on their computers - although the movie companies will disagree with that.

If P2P file sharing is such a problem to them, why don’t the movie companies get together and offer their own P2P registration system? That way nobody could complain that there was no alternative. This is now happening with music, so why not movies? Or are the movie companies so Neanderthal that they are unable to break into the 21st century? A legal membership site would seem a logical answer, and on payment of a fee you could use the service legally as you currently use file sharing services to download illegally.

It is unlikely that we will see such a thing, however, and even Bittorrent’s negotiations with the big movie makers look like they will take years to finalize, at least to enable you to download and burn a movie onto a DVD they will. You can legally download movies now, but the file disappears from your computer after a while. Who wants to pay good money for that when you can download to a DVD for free?

The movie companies had better get their act together before somebody develops a P2P system that is totally invisible to them. Then they will really be in trouble. In the meantime most download sites do not advocate that you download copyright materials, although it is sometimes difficult to tell if you need a license or not.

Others, on the other hand, falsely state that the use of their sites to download current movies is legal. All file sharing sites are legal - it is the way that some people use them that is not. The legal use of P2P movie downloads can bring thousands of movies back to life that have seen their day, but are wonderful movies nevertheless.

Many of these are now practically unobtainable, except for their existence on the hard drives of true P2P file sharing software users from which everybody in the network can download and legally enjoy them. Sophia Loren was fantastic in the 1960 movie ‘Two Women’, and the Hitchcock 1935 version of The 39 steps with Robert Donat is still considered the definitive and best ever version. Both are legally downloadable free using file sharing software.

Almost all of us have tried downloading our favorite movie, music or video online. And if our search is of a latest, top-of-the-charts listings, we are sure to find almost all the sites offering that. But hat if what we are looking for is not the usual hits of the present? What if it is something parallel and out of the box? Maybe and old classic or an art movie? Chances are that we shall not find it, no matter how many search engines we go through. And there are greater chances that you will not find th DVD of that movie/ music in any store.

Well, the is an answer for all such sticky situations. Most of the downloading sites, have their own listings in the website. These are the files the website company has access to and have posted them for you to download. The range becomes limited. But with the P2P (peer-to-peer) technology, its a different story all together. Websites using P2P technology has the largest bank of files one can ever think of. This is because every member in the network shares his files with the others. So, we have a huge pool of movies, music videos and tunes at our disposal.

Each member in the network has his own collection. When he signs in, his collection can be shared by others in the network, just the way he can access others’ collections. So, the more the members, the more the files!

Also, in a normal case, if there are too many members signed in at a particular time, th downloading speed gets affected. In his case, it is not so! This is because each member computer can directly connect with the other member computer. There is no central server holding all of them together through which the data needs to pass. Each compute interacts with the other individually. The result is a fast download speed!

P2P downloading sites are thus a win-win proposition. The more the members, the larger the collection to choose from and the faster the download. No matter what you are looking for, someone or the other in the network would definitely have it! And just in case you do not find it in your first search, try again after sometime! With numerous people signing in and out continuously, you shall definitely find it.

P2P file sharing programs are free. Period. But there are P2P scam sites out there that want you to pay them instead. P2P scam sites are rogue companies that have set up shop to fleece unsuspecting music downloaders looking for file sharing programs by charging a fee for an otherwise free service.

No P2P file sharing software costs money. Exceptions would be a site asking members to make a monetary donation to help pay for bandwidth, hosting costs, and other administrative costs.

Some P2P file sharing programs offer “pro” versions of their free software. But again, their basic service is free to the public. I want you to fully understand this, because paying a P2P scam site money can not only make your wallet a bit lighter, it can also make your computer vulnerable to dangerous spyware.

That’s right. These scam sites are only interested in making money off you. As well as actually taking your money by fooling you into paying them, they’ll make money off you by installing spyware on your PC, so that they can get paid by sharing your online habits and personal information with others.

For music download beginners, all of this can be very confusing. Why? Because these scam sites advertise all over the Internet. Search engines return results chockful of these scams alongside the real P2P file sharing programs; their banner ads riddle the Internet landscape; sites are promoting these scams to get their piece of your money.

Most real P2P programs don’t advertise much on the Internet. The reason is that they’re not money makers. It takes money to advertise, and who has more money– the free P2P file sharing programs or the scam artists? You guessed it. P2P relies on word of mouth. The scam sites rely primarily on advertising.

How Can I Tell a P2P Scam Site?

This is the easy part, if you know what you’re looking for. P2P scam sites often use phrases like 100% Legal, which is absolutely untrue. This is a trick they use to prey on people interested in P2P file sharing programs, but who are worried (rightly) about Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) lawsuits. Keep in mind that sharing and downloading of copyrighted files is, at this moment, an illegal activity.

Another tactic is to use fake endorsements and recommendations from legitimate companies. Other cons are to use phrases like Direct Downloads!, Get Access Now!, Download Unlimited Free Music!, and other phrases that are promising you things they absolutely CANNOT deliver.

How Does It Work & How are They Doing It?

To be honest, I do not know the ins and outs of P2P scam sites. But I know this: all P2P file sharing programs are free. Think about it a moment. It is because music files are being shared free of charge (without artists receiving royalties) that organizations like the RIAA are mad and suing.

These P2P scam sites are merely taking your money, downloading a little spyware to your PC, then connecting you to one of the real P2P file sharing programs.

This is all convoluted by the nature of P2P, which is a series of servers networking files to one another. Unless you’re buying your music MP3 downloads from a legitimate company, either per song/album or through a monthly subscription, you cannot be sure where your music is coming from.

The legal status of P2P file sharing programs is confusing. We know that MP3 files themselves are not illegal. For example, it’s legal to possess MP3s, to rip your CDs to your hard drive, and to burn CDs for your personal use. But, by sharing and/or downloading these files, you are breaking copyright laws. To my knowledge, P2P scam sites are not actually breaking any laws. But why pay for something you don’t have to?

One of the most common techniques these scam artists use is to set up sites that are misspellings or derivations of popular P2P file sharing programs. KaZaA is probably the most hijacked name being used these days.

Other sites may not actually charge you anything at all, but they’ll “give you the software for free” if you give them your email address. This too is a scam. Because once again, they’re just sending you along to a proper P2P program, but after collecting your email address, they’re selling it to third parties. Don’t give these scammers any of your personal information!

If you’re on a website you trust, even this website, you may see ads by these scam artists, preaching their lies about 100% blah, blah, blah. For your own security, don’t click on the links. They’re still scams. (Many independent websites rely on ads to pay the bills. We don’t always have full control over what advertisements appear on our sites. Keep in mind that most online advertisements are arranged and distributed by third-party companies who pair up advertisements with appropriate keywords. So a page that discusses “music downloads” is likely to have an ad from a scam site singing their own false praises.)

On this note, there are sites all over the Internet that actually promote P2P scam sites. Why? I have my opinions. First, these scam sites are paying large sums of money to affiliates who promote their sites. For example, a scam site may be charging you $29.95 for their non-service. Well, they’re paying affiliates over half (I’ve seen the pay-out as high as 75%) of that just for getting you, the visitor, to their scam sites.

I Think I’ve Used One of these Scam Sites. What Do I Do Now?

Stop! Right now, stop using that service. If you’ve got some type of monthly payment with them, stop paying them. Cancel your “membership,” contact your bank or credit card company, and stop paying them immediately! Secondly, your computer has probably have been infected by spyware, and you need to remove it right away. I recommend purchasing spyware-removal software like Pest Patrol because they do the best job at clearing out spyware parasites.

If you’ve been pulled into a scam site, just rack it up to experience. Their ad copy is very convincing, and you just wanted to “be legal” while downloading. Take heart in knowing that you’re not alone. But you’re better off now, with this information at your disposal.

In my opinion, this is another reason to consider not using P2P file sharing programs as a means to get your online music. I think that these P2P scam sites will increase in number, and will use more clever tactics to get your money and your information. Until the peer-to-peer communities are regulated in some way, I fear that these types of activities will get worse before they improve.

It is the trend these days to get free music through the use of P2P software such as Limewire. People feel it a hassle to go to the stores and purchase the CDs. But, even for this free music, there is a price. No, this price is not paid with money. It is paid by the destruction of the computer. Since there are many types of P2P software floating around, we’ll first discuss why using Limewire is discouraged.

While Limewire has many advantages, there are more disadvantages. Unfortunately, many do not discover what they are until it is too late: or what’s worse, they are never discovered at all. One disadvantage is that it has been known to wreck people’s computers. This is due to the fact that files are being shared with other users. Hence, this is the reason it is called P2P software, which stands for peer to peer. Because files are being shared, this means that viruses and other harmful software are being spread around. The computer is constantly open for attack, as the files are being downloaded right onto the hard drive. It will only be a matter of time before the computer starts working slowly and then stops working altogether.

Something else that is of extreme importance is that Limewire can enable others to have access to important data. Anyone who has the software installed can remotely search other people’s hard drives on the network and download whatever it is that they want. Users just have to enable whatever folders they’d like to share, and then access is granted to anyone using Limewire. If there are any important documents in these folders, anyone can get their hands on them without any extraordinary exploitation of the program. Though Limewire has to be running in order for this to be accomplished, it still does not provide piece of mine, as nobody is ever aware when their hard drives are being searched, especially if they are away from their computers, which often happens when Limewire is left running for several hours at a time do to downloading bundles of files.

Limewire has also been discovered to play a major role in computer identity theft. People have been known to use the program to access even sensitive company information. For instance, there was one case that occurred in Denver Colorado, where a man was found to have had crucial documents belonging to twenty-five businesses all over the United States. The plans for the information were not known: however, a serious investigation was launched. This is just one of many cases that occur.

There are even more risks when it comes to using the free model. Free P2P programs come bundled with spyware, malware, viruses, and other unwanted programs that can pose a potential threat to your computer. Even should a paid program be used, there are many worries that come along with it.

All of these reasons here are enough to discourage one from wanting to use Limewire at all. See what peace of mind can bring, and stay away from using P2P software.

You don’t have to look hard to find places to download music online – websites of all sorts will readily pop-up at your mouse click. Many will tempt you with fantastic free offers, including the software that enables you to do this for free and then share it with other users. And while everybody knows that these music sharing or p2p sites are potentially dangerous, to resist their offers may be really difficult.

If RIAA suing “online music sharers” is not something that can stop you from downloading free music files and you are still pretty much inclined towards p2p sites, be aware that you are putting yourself at risk. In case anything happens to you or your PC, nobody will bear responsibility, except for you, yourself. Just remember that there are legal and safe ways to download music online, even if you have to pay a few bucks.

The file share software available on p2p music websites is what you should be cautious about in the first place. Yes, it will let you do it for free, but at the same time it may be a source of huge trouble – with various malware and viruses coming along with it.

Adware, installed in most file sharing software, is what you can get as a package along with a music file. You may think that it is not harmful – it is not a virus, after all. But your PC will be stuffed with unwanted advertising, which can cause its system to slow down or even collapse. Spyware is even worse, because it has the ability to gather your personal data and surfing habits; operating in conspiracy, it can even modify your files and computer system settings.

And needless to say, every time you download music online your computer gets exposed to viruses and worms of all sorts. Though file sharing and software evolve all the time, trying to find ways to protect the users from virus attacks, you are still in a very vulnerable position unless you decide to switch to a legitimate downloading website.

If you are a regular visitor of p2p sites, the least you can do to protect your PC is make sure your antivirus program is effective and up-to-date. But even in this case you are not 100% safe; while antivirus and file sharing software advance, so do viruses and malware.

One more risk associated with downloading music online for free is pornography content. A music file, which you have downloaded, may turn to be a link to a porno site. Apart from new dangers for both your privacy and PC, your concern should be kids and teenagers who may use p2p sites for free music. If as a parent, that’s where you spent most of your free time, chances are your child will follow your example.

It is crucial to learn as much as possible about the website and the file sharing software it offers. It also makes sense to surf around and see what your options are. After all, the last thing you want is to regret about your decision to download it online when there are so many other better methods.

Why not check out the available alternatives at my music blog where you can safely download music online and enjoy millions of songs for a one-time flat fee that even a teen can afford?

My previous article looked at the privacy issues when Downloading Movies, Games & Music Online over P2P networks. This article looks at the dangers posed by viruses and spyware and how you need to ensure you PC is fully protected. (Note: if you require P2P download software head on over to reviewblaster.com where I review the best available).

Viruses

The number of viruses is not only on the increase but they are also becoming more and more sophisticated. As more and more people interact in increasing sophisticated ways over the internet (such as file sharing over P2P Networks) the dangers multiply significantly. It is therefore very important that you not only have the best anti-virus software available but that is correctly installed and configured to protect your PC at all times.

Not only will you need the weapon that your ant-virus software is but you will also need the armour of a firewall. A firewall will stop any program on the net accessing your machine and installing malicious software on it. All the P2P download software we recommend at reviewblaster.com comes with free easy to use ant-virus and firewall software but you may also want to consider investing in heavy duty virus-checkers and firewall defences. We include reviews of the best and recommend you ensure you check them out.

Spyware

Like many things on the internet spyware began ‘innocently’ enough. It was first used by the larger corporations as a way to track their customers online purchasing habits as a way to better assess their needs , etc. in order that they could deliver better products, etc. So, ‘innocent’ enough if you don’t regard even that as an intrusion (and many people do) but that debate is for another time.

Unfortunately a lot of these programs are now used fraudulently for what is broadly known as identity theft. Essentially they sit on your computer and dial out your most personal information primarily of course your bank and credit card details. The Banks are, perhaps understandably, reluctant to publish details figures of the extent of any frauds that occur and I suspect ‘hush up’ the larger occurrences but you will no doubt have read of many examples yourself or even been a victim.

Spyware can also track your internet activity in general, change your home page and favourites list and add pop-ups. If when surfing the net you are constantly bombarded with pop-ups then I guarantee you have been infected with malicious spyware. It can also use up large amounts of your computers memory and bandwidth reducing your internet surfing to a crawl or even crashing your PC!

Conclusion

Sadly and regrettably surfing the internet without adequate anti-virus and anti-spyware software is no longer an option. If you are using P2P networks it is extremely important that you ensure your security when downloading movies, games & music online. If you head on over to reviewblaster.com we review the best anti-virus and anti-spyware available. Keep your downloading safe and secure and you can really enjoy this great resource.