FBI closes down 'Star Wars' p2p network

By Steve Malone

Posted on 26 May 2005 at 11:34

The FBI has announced that it has shut down the P2P network Elitetorrents.org. The Bureau said that the website was the source of recent pirated copies of the new Star Wars movie `Revenge of the Sith` which was leaked onto the Internet even before the film was released.

The FBI says that the final film in the Star Wars cycle, `Episode III: Revenge of the Sith,` turned up on the p2p network more than six hours before it appeared in cinemas. Not surprisingly, it turned out to be something of a hit. The authorities claim that over the following 24 hours, the movie was downloaded more than 10,000 times.

FBI and U.S. Immigration and Customs, armed with 10 search warrants, raided the premises of Elite Torrent. The authorities also took control of the main server and posted the message, `This Site Has been Permanently Shut Down by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement`. However, at the time of writing, even that message has disappeared and the domain name is now parked at GoDaddy.com.

Based around BitTorrent technology, Elite Torrents allegedly aided the illegal distribution of more than 17,800 film and software titles that were downloaded 2.1 million times. The site was said to have had around 133,000 members.

The action is said to be the first criminal enforcement action by the FBI that targeted piracy via peer-to-peer p2p networks using BitTorrent technology. BitTorrent is proving to be something of a headache for the movie industry and software companies alike. Unlike earlier p2p technologies, BitTorrent can manage the huge files generated by films and today's software.

The US movie industry has become increasingly alarmed at the spread of BitTorrent based sites and has already acted to close down several prominent p2p networks.

However, the p2p networks seem to have won a small victory. In making the announcement Assistant Secretary for Immigration and Customs Enforcement Michael J. Garcia said, `Through today's landmark enforcement actions, ICE and the FBI have shut down a group of online criminals who were using legitimate technology to create one-stop shopping for the illegal sharing of movies, games, software and music.` Note the phrase 'legitimate technology`. The Feds at least admit that BitTorrent and its ilk are here to stay.