Limeware Service Shut Down

[Corrine]

LimeWire file-sharing service shut down by US courtOctober 26, 2010 -- Popular online file-sharing service LimeWire was shut down by a US federal court on Tuesday following a lawsuit filed by the music industry.The move came a little more than five months after a US judge ruled in favor of 13 music companies in a copyright infringement and unfair competition case brought against LimeWire.LimeWire.com featured a legal notice on its home page on Tuesday stating it was "under a court-ordered injunction to stop distributing and supporting its file-sharing software."The legal notice linked to the court order from US District Court Judge Kimba Wood ordering the closure of the service.

More at the source: LimeWire file-sharing service shut down by US courtNotice on the website:

Legal NoticeThis is an official notice that LimeWire is under a court-ordered injunction to stop distributing and supporting its file-sharing software. Downloading or sharing copyrighted content without authorization is illegal.

[ChipDoc]

Limewire has pretty serious market penetration. I can't help but wonder if, since it a P2P setup, the installed setups will simply continue to work as they always have - just without constantly pestering you for upgrades...

[Guest LilBambi]

Security wise, this is a major thing. Limewire has been responsible for many malware infections.Well the combination of Java and Limewire.

[rbdietz]

Security wise, this is a major thing. Limewire has been responsible for many malware infections.Well the combination of Java and Limewire.

Isn't that a little like calling the internet responsible for malware infections?I was under the impression that Limewire itself wasn't the source of infections, but rather the sometimes illicit - often pirated - software and content it allowed to be shared.

[ChipDoc]

Oh it's definitely bad behavior rather than bad software. In fact, the software package is excellent. Limewire is just prevented from releasing or supporting it, but the nature of the beast means that it's likely that an active Limewire community will continue to exist for years.

[Guest LilBambi]

Yes, Limewire is an impressive program based on Java.But with LimeWire, you have it open all the time WHILE SHARING FILES AND FOLDERS!So, combine those vulnerabilities with the time bombs in the media downloads and real easy ways into the system, and don't forget many don't update their systems, browsers, plugins, etc. ... disaster in the making.But the malware problems are actually all of the above. Java when it is exploited can be quite devastating as can Flash, Quicktime, RealPlayer, Media Player, and others.It is all of it.But you can't condemn software or it's foundations (Java in this case). It's the users bad behavior, media providers (not all of them, so don't go there!) that have tried to make sure much of the media is a time bomb, and the malware writers in this case that make that combo so dangerous.

[lewmur]

REMOVED!

Copyrights, Illegal Material, and Links Offsite5. Do not ask for, offer to supply, or post links to, copies of commercial software, MP3s, movies, CD Keys, Product Keys, Serial Numbers, etc. or other intellectual property for which you do not hold the copyright. Do not ask for or post information about or link to anything unlawful. This includes but is not limited to copies of pirated commercial software, commercial music files, movies, and other intellectual property. Do not post any information, or link to any site that contains information, intended to violate the Terms of Service or End User License Agreement of any service, product, or application. Do not request or provide password hacks or cracks.

This conversation will have to continue without breaking the rules or an admin will have to remove the topic.

[Corrine]

But with LimeWire, you have it open all the time WHILE SHARING FILES AND FOLDERS!

A lead-in for my favorite "lecture" when analyzing logs of infected computers:P2P programs form a direct conduit on to your computer. They have always been a target of malware writers and are increasingly so of late. P2P security measures are easily circumvented and if your P2P program is not configured correctly, you may be sharing more files than you realize. There have been cases where people's passwords, address books and other personal, private, and financial details have been exposed to the file sharing network by a badly configured program. With P2P file sharing, what means do you have of identifying or authenticating the source of the download? In addition, a file can be distributed among many hosts, and peers will provide for download the sections that they have already downloaded. This results in the distinct possibility of a distribution method in which malicious bits are mixed with with good files.lecture>

[V.T. Eric Layton]

Let me add my favorite lecture here also...The world is full of risks, not just on the Internet. It behooves an individual to be informed and use a bit of common sense when dealing with the myriad risks out there. There will always be baddies in the world...A person needs to take some responsibility and not always depend on mommy/daddy or BIG BROTHER to keep them protected from the mean, bad world outside their door. Read the instructions. Know what the consequences of your actions can be. Use some frickin' COMMON SENSE.Have a nice day.

[lewmur]

REMOVED!This conversation will have to continue without breaking the rules or an admin will have to remove the topic.

Let me get this straight. You are freely discussing a P2P site but mentioning another such site gets the post removed and a "red letter" lecture on the forum rules. Does this mean you don't think there is ANY legitimate use of P2P? 'Cause I made no mention of using the site for illegitimate purposes. Actually, I made no mention of using the site for ANY purpose. I merely stated that it was still online. Anyone who knows anything about the site could check that for themselves in a couple of seconds. Edited October 27, 2010 by lewmur

[Corrine]

Sorry, lewmur. I have no idea what you posted. The topic is about a legal action taken against a P2P site. Personally, although the legal action taken against limewire.com was due to copyright infringement, I see P2P programs as a security problem. (Thus my "canned" rant posted above.) Many of the security forums require that any P2P software be uninstalled before help will be provided in removing malware.

[Guest LilBambi]

Commenting on a legal action is not the same thing as talking about p2p programs and how they can be used.

Many of the security forums require that any P2P software be uninstalled before help will be provided in removing malware.

I remove it from every computer when they call me in to clean up their computers; new and recurring computers. More than once I have told them that if they let their kids put it back again (3 times they shot the mule), they can find a new computer technician to clean up their computer.And I might add that every Windows computer that has p2p software seems to draw malware like the plague. They call me in when it becomes obvious in one way or another. Which believe me compounds the cleanup tremendously.

[V.T. Eric Layton]

Just to play "devil's advocate" here... I don't know what Lew posted originally, but I do believe that P2P is a wonderful technology when utilized as its meant to be. However, like with any vulnerability, there are those out there who will corrupt and ruin something for their own purposes... email SPAM is a great example. So, to defend the technology a bit, we need to remember that it's the ones corrupting things who should be blamed.But anyway...

[ChipDoc]

Limewire is certainly a conduit for all sorts of malware, but a FAR more dangerous bit of software is email. Shall we remove that from everyone's computer? I'm all for it! 99% of the stuff that comes in on mine is garbage anyhow.

[V.T. Eric Layton]

99% of the stuff that comes in on mine is garbage anyhow.

Hey! Didn't I just email you?

[ChipDoc]

Hope you weren't expecting a reply!

[V.T. Eric Layton]

Nah... I figured you'd just leave me in the SPAM folder.

[ChipDoc]

Nah... I figured you'd just leave me in the SPAM folder.

My Inbox actually IS my spam folder. Anything I actually want to see goes to a subfolder

[V.T. Eric Layton]

My Inbox actually IS my spam folder. Anything I actually want to see goes to a subfolder

Heh! That's one way to do it.

[Guest LilBambi]

Just to play "devil's advocate" here... I don't know what Lew posted originally, but I do believe that P2P is a wonderful technology when utilized as its meant to be. However, like with any vulnerability, there are those out there who will corrupt and ruin something for their own purposes... email SPAM is a great example. So, to defend the technology a bit, we need to remember that it's the ones corrupting things who should be blamed.But anyway...

Absolutely!! P2P is awesome technology! And copyright infringement is far from the only thing it does and does really well!

[securitybreach]

Definitely, I get most of my Linux isos that way and a lot of software/games update using P2P technology. For instance, Facebook and Twitter use BitTorrent to Update Codes across Servers But like any technology, it can be used for good or bad.

[lewmur]

Just to play "devil's advocate" here... I don't know what Lew posted originally, but I do believe that P2P is a wonderful technology when utilized as its meant to be. However, like with any vulnerability, there are those out there who will corrupt and ruin something for their own purposes... email SPAM is a great example. So, to defend the technology a bit, we need to remember that it's the ones corrupting things who should be blamed.But anyway...

That is the point, Eric. By removing my post and PUBLICLY posting the rule she claims I violated, she has implicitly questioned my integrity and left with no way to rebut her contention. Had she removed the post, and sent me a PM explaining her actions, I'd have no complaint.Read Chip Doc's first reply in this thread. He wondered if the legal action taken would have a practical effect. As an answer to that question, I checked a site that is pretty much a clone of Limewire and reported that it was still on line. I guess that she felt that amounted to promoting the site. But that is NOT the impression left by her posting the rules in bright red letters. That gave the impression that I had committed a major transgression.

[Urmas]

Lew,Nobody here questions your integrity – implicitly or otherwise.Check your PMs.

[striker]

Who deleted the message anyway? Was there no PM sent to lew?

[V.T. Eric Layton]

*sigh*Hey folks, no one here is perfect. Li'l Bambi saw something that she thought was a violation and handled it as she did. Ruffling of feathers occasionally occurs when Staff takes actions like these. As Urmas says, no one here is being accused, implicitly or directly, of being criminal or baddies, etc. We're just trying to interpret and enforce Scot's Rules as best we can. I recently had to correct a posting elsewhere on this board about password cracking. I know the posters in that conversation well. They're not criminal. They're long time members here. The post was started innocently. It was just that the topic is one of those "not allowed" things here at Scot's. Contrary to popular belief, Scot's Staff do not take mandatory jack-booted thug training. We are issued the cool boots, though.

[ChipDoc]

On my first or second day I was censured for a perceived violation of the rules. Though it was arguable, I didn't argue - and Eric can tell you how unusual THAT is - but instead simply noted it, changed my behavior, and moved on. Over the years I've discovered that mine isn't the only valid opinion out there. I understand how the Moderators are sometimes put in uncomfortable positions and just do their best.The boots really ARE cool, though!

[striker]

Must be a 'wonderful' job to keep those shining! I wonder: are these the ones made for walking..?

[V.T. Eric Layton]

Must be a 'wonderful' job to keep those shining! I wonder: are these the ones made for walking..?

You should still have your pair in the closet somewhere in your home, Striker. We don't take them back when you retire. Want to wear them again? We could always use you back in BATL!

[securitybreach]

You should still have your pair in the closet somewhere in your home, Striker. We don't take them back when you retire. Want to wear them again? We could always use you back in BATL!

No doubt

[striker]

Thanks guys, but you all handle BATL splendidly, and I really mean that. Our Professeur Penquine would be proud of that.