More Big 4 Winny problems
p2p news / p2pnet: The members of the Big Four Organized Music cartel are finding implementation of the Japanese portion of their sue ‘em all marketing campaign just a little sticky.
Winny became known to the world in 2003 because the first people EMI, Sony BMG, Warner Music and Vivendi Universal (currently in the spotlight for alleged price fixing) had arrested in Japan, "on suspicion of violating copyright laws," were using it.
Today, it’s one of, if not the, most popular file sharing applications in Japan and, "The recent spate of both private and government data being uploaded to the Internet through the Winny file-sharing program highlights the difficulty in controlling and potentially banning the software," says the Yomiuri Shimbun.
Why’s that?
"It’s impossible to restrict file-swapping software because it can also be used legally," according to a government source quoted in the story.
Personal data on Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force members, cipher-related documents, and documents on the planning of combat exercises were recently leaked through Winny p2p and, "The police, who are trying to crack down on Internet-related crimes, also became a target," says the Yomiuri Shimbun, going on:
"Since February, information releases through the Winny program involving such authorities have included data on prison inmates, documents from the Tokyo District Court, information on investigations by the Ehime Prefectural Police Headquarters and information on patients at a Toyama hospital.
"Analysts say the leaks have been rampant because of the number of people who use Winny and because of a virus that infects the peer-to-peer software, which then uploads information on computers to the Internet."
Or were the leaks down to a shared folder(s)? – as a p2pnet reader wondered.
Be that as it may, "According to Trend Micro Inc., an antivirus software developer, 300,000 to 600,000 people are believed to use Winny, and about 300,000 personal computers of Winny users, including those with the virus since removed, have been infected," states the Yomiuri Shimbun.
In December, "the government set up a standard for information management by its organizations. But inadvertent uploads continued despite the measure, says the report, but, "It’s rather a matter of individuals’ lack of responsibility, than a matter of the government’s computer system," it has a senior cabinet official saying.
Meanwhile, the National Police Agency has said it is nearly impossible under current laws to punish those who release information through Winny, adds the story.
Also See:
the world – $100K raised for Winny author, June 3, 2004
Yomiuri Shimbun – Winny woes hard to fix / Punishing users of file-sharing program nearly impossible, March 12, 2006
price fixing – Big Four record labels sued, March 12, 2006
recently leaked – Winny military data leak, February 24, 2006
