Saturday, January 5, 2008

P2P is not safe.

One of thre greatest advancements in the internet landscape is the rise of Peer-to-Peer networks. Peer-to-Peer networks allow users connected to the Internet to link their computers with other computers around the world. These networks are established for the purpose of sharing files. Typically, users of Peer-to-Peer networks install free software on their computers which allows them (1) to find and download files located on another Peer-to-Peer user's hard drive, and (2) to share with those other users files located on their own computer.
I, for one, am a big fan of Peer-to-Peer networks. Most of the files i need or am looking for can be found using such networks. Among the most popular softwares used to access these networks are Limewire and Bittorrent downloaders like Azureus. When you think about, if ever there is something you want to download, you can be sure someone else is looking for the same thing.
However, accessing Peer-to-Peer networks can be a dangerous thing. One actually opens up his/her computer to the entire internet community for file sharing purposes. According to the FBI, computer hacking using Peer-to-Peer networks is one of the 3 most common cyber crimes committed associated with Peer-to-Peer networks. The other 2 are Copyright Infringement and Child Exploitation and Obscenity.
In any case, we are not left without a remedy. Whenever one becomes the victim of of cyber crimes, one can just log on to www.ic3.gov. The Internet Crime Complaint Center, or IC3, gives the victims of cyber crime a convenient and easy-to-use reporting mechanism that alerts authorities of suspected criminal or civil violations. For law enforcement and regulatory agencies at the federal, state, local and international level, IC3 provides a central referral mechanism for complaints involving Internet related crimes.
At their website, www.ic3.gov, just scroll down the webpage and you'll find a BIG RED LINK provided to access their complaint mechanism.

Source:
FBI - Cyber Investigations, http://www.fbi.gov/cyberinvest/cyberedletter.htm
Internet Crime Complaint Center, http://www.ic3.gov/

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