Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

RIAA Smacked by DoS

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the gonna-get-messy-before-it-gets-clean dept.

nekid writes "ZDNet is reporting that the RIAA's website was hit by a denial-of-service (DoS) attack over the weekend, most likely in response to their endorsement of legislation that would give them permission to do the same to personal computers that are pirating music (see earlier article). Seems to me that they are killing themselves with bad public relations..." But it seems to me that they don't care, and are instead banking on the ignorance of the bulk of the world.

3 of 831 comments (clear)

  1. And if you want to be untraceable... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

    add this:
    --user-agent="MSIE/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 5.0; Windows 98; DigExt)" --execute="http_proxy=xxxx:zzzz"

    where xxxx:yyyy is the IP:port of a HIGH ANONYMITY web proxy, which you can get from one of several online lists, such as:
    http://www.stayinvisible.com/page1.html
    http:// www.atomintersoft.com/products/alive-proxy/ proxy-list/
    etc. :)

  2. Re:and why not? by richieb · · Score: 3, Informative
    As a generally law abiding citizen, you have the responsibility to exhaust all available LEGAL methods of protest, before resorting to the often misunderstood and misused concept of civil disobediance.

    Frankly, as a human being sometimes you may be forced to break the law to do the morally correct thing. For example, just before the Civil War there was a federal law called "futive slave law". It said that an escaped slave was to be returned to its owner.

    However, many people in the North disregarded this law and did the morally correct thing of helping runaways slaves (this was not without risk - you could wind up in jail).

    Current situation may not be as clear cut as slavery. But you can argue that we are protecting our individual freedom of expression and normal methods (i.e. letter writing etc) are not working, so extraordinary measures are needed.

    --
    ...richie - It is a good day to code.
  3. It's not the RIAA, but hired mercenaries by thumbtack · · Score: 3, Informative

    The RIAA doesn't have the knowledge or the skill to do it themselves so they hire companies who do this sort of thing for a living. They pay a certain amonut per song as a base, so many cents (usually about 1.5 cents) per scan, per protocol, then pay the same amount again when they find the files, then so much to send a Cease and Desist Letter. They scan about every 15 minute, or determined by the label. They can run up huge numbers in just a couple of days for popular acts. Who pays? The artist of course, as it goes into their recoupable account, that never shrinks.

    DMusic.com has an article with audio of the California Senate Hearings if you want the lowdown on the labels accounting. (Streaming MP3)it can be found Here especially enlightning is Don Engel's and Fred Wolinski's testimony.