Underground Piracy Sites Want To Block Windows 10 Users
An anonymous reader writes: Some smaller pirate sites have become concerned about Windows 10 system phoning home too many hints regarding that the users are accessing their site. Therefore, the pirate administrators have started blocking Windows 10 users from accessing the BitTorrent trackers that the sites host. The first ones to hit the alarm button were iTS, which have posted a statement and started redirecting Windows 10 users to a YouTube video called Windows 10 is a Tool to Spy on Everything You Do. Additionally, according to TorrentFreak, two other similar dark web torrent trackers are also considering following suit. "As we all know, Microsoft recently released Windows 10. You as a member should know, that we as a site are thinking about banning the OS from FSC," said one of the FSC staff. Likewise, in a message to their users, a BB admin said something similar: "We have also found [Windows 10] will be gathering information on users' P2P use to be shared with anti piracy group."
Not in the summary:
"The anti-piracy group the pirate site admins are referring to is MarkMonitor, a US company that specializes in online corporate identity protection, one that is known to have work with the MPAA in protecting its copyrighted materials, but one that has also worked with Microsoft in the past, to protect Windows users from online identity theft and scam campaigns."
When Microsoft offered Windows 10, I first thought it was an interesting move. Then I remembered who we are talking about here. Of course they will have back-door deals with the media industry. And of course once everyone who had a pirated version of the OS upgrades to the legit free version, they'll slowly move to a subscription model. The future of every business venture nowadays is recurring revenues. Water is wet, rocks are hard and Microsoft is Microsoft. The universe balances. And I'm staying with Xubuntu and VMWare ...
> We WILL rise up and make Windows as worthless as fly shit
And Mom? Bring more Doritos the next time you come down to the basement to get my laundry!
(nom-nom-nom-nom)
Windows 10 is malware in its default seutup. This phone home shit should be blacked so they suffer for being so anti-user.
These companies keep giving us reasons to pirate. Like DRM, embedded spyware, crippled features, forced internet connection to even use it, and so on. And they expect us to pay money for their crap when a free version without these limitations exists? How stupid do they think we are?
Fuck Microsoft, fuck Windows 10. Pirate it and spread the torrent to all your friends. Let's bring down the evil empire!
I predict a strong market for a nice little generic Microsoft-filtering hardware firewall devices. Maybe even an intelligent one that will allow incoming updates and scrub or anonymize outgoing requests.
Kickstarter, anyone?
-- You are in a maze of little, twisty passages, all different... --
Just switch to Debian or another Free OS that doesn't spy on you. It may be a little less convenient, but the inconvenience pays off in a bit more safety the next time you download something.
.... to get people to stop pirating Windows. Make it spy on the pirates!
It took me a few years and getting over being annoyed by people who say what I'm about to say all the time, but fuck it...just switch to Linux...Mint or something. I like Xfce. That is all.
At least in the EU I see no long future for Windows 10's illegal built-in surveillance tools. The EULA violates local laws in many EU countries and probably also EU law, and it is only a matter of time until some EU commission will put an end to it.
Or, at least I hope so, because at one point or another I'll be forced to upgrade to this pile of shit. :/
Not too much. Their biggest big data $thing requiring their infrastructure is Siri which isn't -truly- on OS X. (There's iCloud, but that isn't as based and they don't sell the data inside it.) The newest version of OS X has some web integration in the Safari omnibox and in Spotlight. But the first few times you use either it gives you a disclaimer you can't miss that tells you what's happening and how to turn it off.
Apple provided data mining can be turned off in iOS Settings or OS X System Preferences and it's easy to find.
Nothing is free,
existing is free, which is the opposite of nothing, so you could not be more wrong
So run a Linux VM on your win10 PC. Log the vm in to vpn, do all torrenting from there.
burn to DVD
What's a DVD? Is that one of those ancient 20th century artifacts?
Markmonitor complaints date from over 10 years.
'News' would have been to show us a method on how to block them or prevent Windows 10 do do so.
The best things in life are free.
But when they aren't, there's always Ashley Madison
http://arstechnica.com/informa...
The thing is, it's not just Windows 10. If you regularly update your machines, Microsoft has already added additional telemetry tools to Windows 7 and 8.
http://www.infoworld.com/artic...
What really sucks for me is that I *like* Windows 10. I run it in a VM on my Mac, and I've noticed an immediate performance improvement, especially with boot ups.
But from all the media reports, it looks like Windows 10 is turning into a conspiracy theorists bukake dream. And unless there is very little backlash to this, I can see Microsoft easily porting the rest of their privacy invading tools to their previous OSes.
this is great, how does my wife get all of her garage band files to play on linux?
computers are a means and not an end.
Very true. However, I want my computer to work for MY means, not some company's.
Besides, all this spying can have consequences far into the future. Brendan Eich was fired for making a donation to a voting campaign that won; in other words, he lost his job for being in the majority at the time. He was fired six years after making the donation. Paula Deen lost millions because she said a bad word about someone who had held a gun to her head, twenty years after it happened.
What are you doing right now, that is perfectly legal and socially acceptable... that a few years down the road will have become regarded as the depths of human depravity? What will it cost you when it comes out -- and it can come out, because you're letting them record you doing it.
They will play just fine
what linux application loads garage band files?
Paula Deen lost millions because she said a bad word about someone who had held a gun to her head, twenty years after it happened.
It was more than one bad word, and HOW THE FUCK do you "lose" money that you never actually had in the first place?
"On June 21, 2013, due to a controversy regarding Deen's admission, during a deposition for a lawsuit, that she had used racial slurs, The Food Network announced they will not renew her contract."
Oh and how SAD IT ALL IS:
"It was announced that on September 24, 2014 Paula will unveil her very own network. "
GOSH it's SO SAD that she ONLY has enough money to start ONE network.
I guess she will have to be fine with the creepy guy from Microsoft following her around when she does her shopping then. That you're fine with it is already apparent.
what microsoft guy? garage band runs on BSD, the OSX flavor.
Real Quicken.
The Universe is a non-profit organization.
The second law of thermodynamics:
1) You have to play the game.
2) You can't win.
3) You can't even break even
Hell, somebody is getting ahead here, it sure ain't me.
Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
>For sure, if you are dead-set on using proprietary software that is not available on Linux (or at least on Windows), then you may be blocked. However, if there is a port of the application to at least Windows, you can run that application on Linux using PlayOnLinux/WINE.
Full disclosure: I am a Linux bigot. As to the first statement, yes, I do have to say, sometimes someone is genuinely 'blocked' as you put it --- stuck with Windows for some essential proprietary application. This is however, in my observation at least, much less often than people think, the primary driver being as someone mentioned in a post above, a management mandate to use Windows where you work. Other than that, the cases seem to be very specific and limited--- a hospital's MRI software or something like that.
As to the second statement, Wine/PlayOnLinux is viable for some things, but very definitely not all. Even a VM is not a solution for every application or game, so I don't go too far down that road when I recommend Linux. The real answer is finding Linux applications that do what you need to do, and I've been able to do that almost all the time.
Heck, my wife runs Linux and doesn't even know it, nor does she care. She does everything she needs and wants to do and I don't have to worry quite so much about malware.
I have a sneaking hunch that my small business I have upgrading systems still running XP, mostly older retired folks (like me) to Linux may get a BIG shot in the arm soon, once joe-six-pack finds out just how pervasive the spying is on Microsoft's new OS.. Expert opinion is that not only keylogging, but streaming both any microphone or webcam data goes out to Microsoft servers.. I guess they figure its all good because they couch it in oh-so-mealy terms in their massive EULA, but once Joe-six-pack catches on and has this blatant spying thrown in his face, I predict you're gonna see a MASSIVE increase in Linux's adoption rate... Just sayin..
THANK YOU, Edward Snowden!! Americans owe you a debt of gratitude (whether they know it or not..)
Sorry, no. If FB et al proved one thing, then that people don't give half a shit about their privacy as long as you give them the noose for their neck for free.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
HOW THE FUCK do you "lose" money that you never actually had in the first place?
Based on an estimate of how much money you expect you could/would have earned otherwise.
The pharmaceutical industry does this when determining how much to charge for a drug. It's not actually (or solely) based on actual development costs, but also - and mainly (from the articles I've read) - based on how much the company would have earned by simply investing that money instead doing development. For example, from: The Make-Believe Billion
The statistic Big Pharma typically cites ... is that the cost of bringing a new drug to market is about $1 billion. Now a new study indicates the cost is more like, um, $55 million.
I'm not saying this is morally/ethically right, just answering your question.
It must have been something you assimilated. . . .
Yeah, this certainly is the problem here. Screw these people and their privacy, there's profit on the line!
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
One MINOR caveat. Optical discs are generally READ ONLY, this is an important attribute that gets lost in the discussion about USB flash drives. Optical OS install still has its place, if for no other reason than you know you are installing an untainted copy. I really hate optical drives, but they are still necessary.
Good-bye
rhythmbox with "bad" (codec) gstreamer plugins http://crunchbang.org/forums/v...
You know I'd never heard of this woman so I looked it up. You are in fact totally wrong.
She in fact did not have her show renewed when a court case was started against her, her brother and her company alleging "several instances of sexual and racial workplace discrimination." The gun incident was one she admitted (during the case as testimony) to using the word Nigger about and the show was already canceled by then, it didn't cause the cancellation.
Has anyone looked into blocking unwanted communication with mother Microsoft? Using host file, or other techniques (example: router) to keep the system from communicating with servers...
Yes, and the same people freaking out about the data Microsoft collects are the same ones using Google Chrome which reports even more useful information than anything Microsoft collects. So much FUD here. Anyway, running Tails through a VM + VPN is probably enough.
I don't want Microsoft spying on my shit, but everything I do still goes through my ISP -- so it's pretty irrelevant unless you think you can magically trust - say - Comcast as much or more than you can trust Microsoft... which you can't.
"was a FINALIST 2 yrs. in a ROW @ MS Tech-Ed 2000-2002 in its HARDEST CATEGORY: SQLServer Performance Enhancement"
That isn't saying much considering how much of a POS SQLServer happens to be.
Still waiting on Serviscope_minor to wake up to fucking reality and realize that Jessica Price isn't going to fuck him.
Question: Does Windows 10 spy on what you do using a VM? If not, run your preferred *NIX variant in a VM under Windows 10 and do whatever you like.
If it does spy on your activities within a VM, consider flipping things around: *NIX running a VM that contains Windows 10.
I do understand that there is value to MS in sending data home and, yes, there is some value to us in having data sent home to MS. That said, if it is out of my control, the cost is far greater than any value I receive, so it ain't gonna happen. I was intending to upgrade one of my computers to Windows 10 Enterprise, but until I can confirm that no data get phoned home outside my control, not a chance. And in case Satya is listening, yes, I've managed to discourage my employer from upgrading to Windows 10 (given that security is a major consideration for us, data being phoned home outside of our control is a non-starter).
linquendum tondere
It appears these updates are usage trackers:
KB 2952664
KB 3022345
This is the core Windows 10 update nagware:
KB 3035583
These updates should be permanently removed and ignored on well-run systems.
What other updates should be removed and banned from Windows 7/8 in the interest of privacy?
Yeah, just like that massive reaction to NSA spying that rocked the nation. Oh wait.... Nobody cares.
Cwm, fjord-bank glyphs vext quiz
but once Joe-six-pack catches on and has this blatant spying thrown in his face, I predict you're gonna see a MASSIVE increase in Linux's adoption rate... Just sayin..
What world do you live in where Joe-six-pack cares about his privacy?
People can't even give up Facebook let alone something far more subtle and discrete like the Windows 10 fiasco.
Yes, Joe Sixpack will install Linux, ... and then reinstall Windows when he realises that he can't run MS Office, or Photoshop Elements under Linux.
Run a VM, and install and older OS...
You have yet to prove SQLServer isn't shit.
So, no, you fail.
Try again when you've got a 30kB database that can parse billions of rows a second and a website that can render those results in microseconds (and show you all the associated porn with it, too!)
Still waiting on Serviscope_minor to wake up to fucking reality and realize that Jessica Price isn't going to fuck him.
Oh, and so you know - said database is part of my GAME.
A literal 2D Second Life where you can do ANYTHING.
Try again when you understand that SQL Server is shit and better databases have existed well before SQLS ever did.
SQL Server does not support MINUS, nor INTERSECT - what a shitty database.
Still waiting on Serviscope_minor to wake up to fucking reality and realize that Jessica Price isn't going to fuck him.
If the .band files are audio-only, such as .aiff, then Audacity can play them. If they have MIDI files, you'll need to first export to wav/mp3/aiff/m4a/etc, then play them on anything.
Here is a list of alternatives for composing on Linux.
Long time windows hater here , use Macs and Linux, but I accidentally ended up with a windows PC a month ago. My first impression of it, with windows 8 installed, was oh my god, I heard that windows 8 was ten steps back, but I had no idea everyone was right. It was far less intuitive and usable than XP for example. But I decided to upgrade to windows 10 because I had read some good reviews but diehard mac users. From an out of the box factory recovery of windows 8 to an installed windows 10 was an 8 hour ordeal with a few cryptic steps one had to google along the way. It's truly mind boggling that that Microsoft can't figure out how it install a new OS in less than 8 hours. I was going as fast as one could go, the problem was not the dowload speed, that was instant comparitaively on my fast connection. It was that it had to do about 250 incremental and 2 major system updates before it would let you even request windows 10.
Anyhow once I got windows 10 installed. I was expecting to hate it. I'm sort of upset that it's so good. It basically is very close to a well configured linux mint in look and feel. The start menus is back and those crazy pants tiles with tonnes of crap you never asked for are wrangled into a small corner of the start menu and trimmed down to just the things you use a lot. The best description of the OS is that it no longer gets in your way so it's more like every other OS now.
It's still baffling in the directory layout and the mysteries of the registry. And since I have no idea how to use power shell I feel completely helpless; unistalls are inscrutable. And there's still the problem of crapware that burdens this. After you install Norton Utilities tries to trick you into installing it before revealing that it is payware. Within 2 weeks I got the entrire system trojaned with mal ware. I wasn't trying to do anything bad at all. I was trying to install an editor for minecraft mods and it came wrapped in something called openDownloader which just hosed my system. I told the windows 10 to revert it self, so I lost all my installs but at least got my computer back from the grave. What's meaningful about that ordeal is that it was the first time in my entire life that I got hit with malware. Iv'e certainly managed to download accidental malware on linux and mac, but it's always been possible for me to either inspect it enough to figure it out beofre the install or to install it under conditions (like not root or with a sandbox) that it was neutered or at the very least find every file that got touched. So malware has never been a problem for me before ever before I used a modern windows machine.
So between the 8 hour ordrdeal and the instant rooting I'm not a fan on Microsoft design. But if you are a savy windows user, have an already updated computer (not a factor reinstall) then installation will be a snap, and you will love this operating system. It's so mac and linux mint like.
Some drink at the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.
I think Facebook and Windows 10 are different things here.
I know what information I put on Facebook, so combine that with what people can get from my web searches and such and I can have some idea what privacy I'm getting up. Also, I get benefits from using Facebook, so it's a matter of balancing what level of privacy I want against how much I want to stay connected to certain friends and family. (For simplicity's sake, I assume that Facebook has no privacy settings, so anything I put on Facebook can be seen by anybody. I know it's not quite true, but it's close enough.)
W10, as far as I know, has a EULA that says Microsoft can snoop on everything I do, and there's no reason to do that. Windows 7 does pretty much what I want in a Microsoft operating system, and doesn't do that snooping.
"When you have eliminated the unacceptable, whatever is left, however improbable, must be the truthiness" - Holmes
There is no since in bothering with most of the people, they are locked in there ways. It is senseless and futile trying to making then change, they will defend to the bitter end there point of view. Most of us that have seen the light will never make then change there ways, so do not bother. But for those that are tire of loosing there rights of freedom, I will give you some tools for audio & video production. This are few simple distributions that will cover audio and video production and all frequently needed software. My kids are studying audio&video production and graphics design. They use MS & OSX at the university, but they use live sticks when they are not at home. And I tell then the same thing, use Musix, KXStudio, AVLinux, this have all the tools that you are most likely to use & need. From editing audio tracks to music production and music scores, and as to VST plugins you can get everything that you would ever need. And as far of it being out dated software Ardour will keep update in audio plugins for a modest fee. And when I say modest fee I do not mean $200 it $5.00 a month, but it best explain other read some forums you will see. https://community.ardour.org/n... Granted Linux is not all in one fix for all that is wrong in this world, but one step at a time we will get there. And as for the privacy with MS & OSX that will never simply go a way, they will be forced to comply with big brother more and more. So it is you choice. All that most of us are saying is that you are making choices that will make a difference in the future. If you give all your rights now, you will not have any in the future. You will be the same slave that so call are fighting for in other countries. Freedom is a very lucid and limited thing, and I called a thing because it is almost none existent today. Every day you have given your right under the pretext of security. Well security was defined in the middle ages. I will protect you, so I will own you. So how well did that turn out, is that what you want for your future.
Three things:
1) To my original point most people don't give a crap what they put on Facebook. Controlling the flow of information is something the general public do quite poorly. You may control it, but then you are also advocating not using Windows 10. This is quite a different mindset from the common person.
2) The snooping in Windows 10 are sold as perceived features with perceived real benefits. e.g. sending your contact list to aid in voice recognition is something that people with smartphones have shown to be quite happy with, likewise sharing their location with a company so that search results include the location in the search context is also widely practiced. Reading through the setup on Windows 10 MS have justified every bit of data they collect in terms of features and customer experience.
3) I hope you have been manually screening each and every update in Windows 7 otherwise you're no better off then firing up Windows 10 with every privacy invading feature enabled. Do a quick search and you'll find MS have rolled out about 10 updates to Windows 7, 8, 8.1 and even Server 2008 R2 and Server 2012.
They don't need to send that many data to identify you. It will be easy to pack with steganography into harmless looking logs etc.
Even by variations in the contained timestamps they could encode information.
If you don't have the source code, you'll never ever be able to detect this.
https://www.google.com/search?...
Son you can't even keep track of what's happening NOW. Take your Windows 98 technology and go the fuck home.
Still waiting on Serviscope_minor to wake up to fucking reality and realize that Jessica Price isn't going to fuck him.