The files, rumored to have been seeded as an effort to curb piracy, stop downloading just before completion.Intentionally corrupted files have been reported on MyBitTorrent, a file-sharing site that uses BitTorrent technology to distribute music, movies and other digital content.
According to the site's administrator, new torrents have been released from "fake" trackers. Usually, trackers are used by individuals to hunt for content across numerous BitTorrent servers and deliver it back to the user.
The trackers seen at MyBitTorrent have published about 50 variants of two popular movies, "Wedding Crashers" and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," as well as three episodes of the TV show "The O.C."
Users who try to download the files end up with only about 98 percent of the file before the torrent stops downloading.
The seeding of BitTorrent sites with corrupted files is not new, said Sophos Plc Senior Technology Consultant Graham Cluley.
In the past, such attempts have been suspected to be the work of the recording or film industries, as part of the effort to stop file sharing, he said.
Read more here about content protection issues.
"Who's to say the RIAA or the MPAA would be wrong to take such measures?" Cluley said. "As long as the files aren't infecting computers with spyware, it's not actually a malicious act. If they took the step toward damaging someone's drive, it's a criminal act, but as it stands now, it's just a way to try and stop piracy."
Although seeding listing sites like MyBitTorrent may have some effect on illegal downloading of copyrighted content, it is likely that such an impact won't last long, said Nicholas Farka, marketing manager at CacheLogic.
Click here to read more about BitTorrent and Microsoft's potentially rival P2P project.
"How affected the BitTorrent community will be depends on how clever someone is with the disruptive material," Farka said. "But that only goes so far."
Because BitTorrent users form a close community and communicate frequently through message boards, attempts to distribute corrupt files will not be as deeply felt as the file creators might hope, Farka said. Also, BitTorrent administrators tend to be protective of their users.
"The admins will make sure it works smoothly, so if something is being spread around that's not right, they'll get the word out," Farka said. "If you want to get a corrupt file in the system, it's much easier to do over something like Kazaa or eDonkey than BitTorrent."
However, BitTorrent users should be less concerned about files that don't download properly, and more anxious about files that are spiked by virus writers, Cluley added.
"Virus writers often use BitTorrent to spread their work," Cluley said. "For the health of your computer, stay off the listing sites."
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