<nettime> IWT Bans RIAA From Accessing Its Network

["R. A. Hettinga" <rah@shipwright.com>]

http://www.informationwave.net/news/20020819riaa.php


  IWT Bans RIAA From Accessing Its Network

August 19, 2002

Information Wave Technologies has announced it will actively deny the
Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) from accessing the
contents of its network. Earlier this year, the RIAA announced its new
plan to access computers without owner's consent for the sake of
protecting its assets. Information Wave believes this policy puts its
customers at risk of unintentional damage, corporate espionage, and
invasion of privacy to say the least.

Due to the nature of this matter and RIAA's previous history, we feel the
RIAA will abuse software vulnerabilities in a client's browser after the
browser accesses its site, potentially allowing the RIAA to access and/or
tamper with your data. Starting at midnight on August 19, 2002,
Information Wave customers will no longer be able to reach the RIAA's web
site. Information Wave will also actively seek out attempts by the RIAA to
thwart this policy and apply additional filters to protect our customers'
data.

Information Wave will also deploy peer-to-peer clients on the Gnutella
network from its security research and development network (honeynet)
which will offer files with popular song titles derived from the Billboard
Top 100 maintained by VNU eMedia. No copyright violations will take place,
these files will merely have arbitrary sizes similar to the length of a 3
to 4 minute MP3 audio file encoded at 128kbps. Clients which connect to
our peer-to-peer clients, and then afterwards attempt to illegally access
the network will be immediately blacklisted from Information Wave's
network. The data collected will be actively maintained and distributed
from our network operations site.

The placement of this policy is not intended to hamper the RIAA's piracy
elimination agenda or advocate Internet piracy, but to ensure the safety
of our customers' data attached to our network from hackers or corporate
espionage hidden by the veil of RIAA copyright enforcement.

If you have questions, comments, or concerns regarding this policy, please
e-mail riaa@informationwave.net.


-- 
-----------------
R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah@ibuc.com>
The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/>
44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA
"... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity,
[predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to
experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'




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