[Dewayne-Net] File-sharing 'darknet' unveiled

[Dewayne Hendricks]

[Note:  Here's the BBC's take on Sweden's Pirate Party's Darknet
service item that I posted earlier this week.  This article adds a
lot of additional info to the story.  DLH]


 File-sharing 'darknet' unveiled

A "darknet" service that allows users to share music files
anonymously on the web has been launched in Sweden.

Relakks, as the service is known, allows users to send and receive
files through a heavily-encrypted connection.

It is the first commercial example of a darknet, a virtual network
set up to share files between trusted users.

The service is endorsed by political group the Pirate Party which is
running for election in Sweden under a banner to reform the country's
copyright laws.

"There are many legitimate reasons to want to be completely anonymous
on the internet," said Rickard Falkvinge, chairman of the Pirate Party.

"The right to exchange information in private is fundamental to the
democratic society. Without a safe and convenient way of accessing
the internet anonymously, this right is rendered null and void."

Closed groups

A darknet is a cordoned-off, anonymised section of the net where
users can meet, chat and swap data.

Usually darknets are confined to small tight-knit groups such as
hackers who use the secure connections to distribute information and
hacking tools.

They have also been used by paedophiles to distribute images of child
abuse.

Many are invitation-only services where potential members have to
upload material to prove themselves to the group before they are
granted full access.

Similar identity-hiding tools such as Tor are used by net dissidents
in countries like China to avoid persecution for their activities on
the web.

Previous attempts to launch large scale anonymous networks, such as
Nullsoft's Waste program have been unsuccessful. After its release in
2003, Waste was removed form distribution by Nullsoft's parent
company AOL.

Unique service

The new system claims to be the world's first commercial darknet. It
is provided by Swedish company Relakks and is endorsed by the Pirate
Party.

It works by giving a user's computer a new IP address, the unique
number the machine uses to identify itself and communicate with other
machines over the net.

IP numbers allocated by your internet service provider (ISP) can be
used to trace and identify a specific computer on a network.

Computers using the Relakks system look like they have a Swedish IP
address, no matter where they are in the world.

Users can then share files, such as music or films, with any other
users. In theory anyone monitoring user's online activities will not
be able to trace their geographical location.

The Pirate Party acknowledge that the service could be used to
distribute copyright material or other content such as images of
child abuse.

"We hear the argument a lot," Mr Falkvinge told the BBC News website.
"No, we don't have any control over what is being sent over the
network but that's the point.

"People who want to hide their activities online already have the
means to do so. We're just giving those tools to the general public."

Democratic rights

File sharing and copyright law is a divisive topic in Sweden. Until
recently the country was a hotbed of piracy where films, music and
software were readily swapped online.

Last year, it outlawed the unauthorised downloading of copyrighted
movies and music in an attempt to curb piracy, after criticism from
Hollywood.

[snip]

Story from BBC NEWS:
<http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/technology/4798059.stm>

Published: 2006/08/16 14:00:26 GMT


Weblog at: <http://weblog.warpspeed.com>

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