Editing MediaDefender

{{short description|Defunct anti-infringement company}}

'''MediaDefender, Inc.''' (now [[Peer Media Technologies]]) was a company that fought copyright infringement<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB120001282486582581|title = Showdown Looms over Pirated-Media Directory|newspaper = Wall Street Journal|date = 11 January 2008}}</ref> that offered services designed to prevent alleged [[copyright infringement]] using [[peer-to-peer]] distribution. They used unusual tactics such as flooding peer-to-peer networks with decoy files that tie up users' computers and bandwidth.<ref>Holahan, Catherine (March 5, 2007). "[http://www.americasnetwork.com/americasnetwork/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=408804 Advertising to the File-Sharing Crowd]" ''[[BusinessWeek]]''. Retrieved on September 16, 2007.</ref> MediaDefender was based in [[Los Angeles, California|Los Angeles]], [[California]] in the United States. As of March 2007, the company had approximately 60 employees<ref name="ArsTechnica3-18-2007">{{Cite web |last=Anderson |first=Nate |date=2007-03-19 |title=Peer-to-peer poisoners: A tour of MediaDefender |url=https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2007/03/mediadefender/ |access-date=16 September 2007 |website=Ars Technica |language=en-us}}</ref> and used 2,000 [[server (computing)|server]]s hosted in California with contracts for 9 [[Gbit/s]] of bandwidth.<ref name="ArsTechnica3-18-2007"/>

These types of organizations are being hired to attempt to stymie peer-to-peer (P2P) traders through a variety of methods including posting fake files online and recording individuals who contribute copyrighted material, but also [[marketing]] to individuals using P2P networks.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Angwin |first1=Julia |last2=McBride |first2=Sarah |last3=Smith |first3=Ethan |date=18 October 2006 |title=Record Labels Turn Piracy Into a Marketing Opportunity |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB116113611429796022 |access-date=16 September 2007 |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]]}}</ref> Clients include [[Universal Pictures]], [[20th Century Fox]], [[Virgin Records]], [[HBO]], [[Paramount Pictures]], and [[Bertelsmann Music Group|BMG]]{{Citation needed|date=September 2009}}. On August 1, 2005, the digital media entertainment company [[ARTISTdirect]] announced that it had acquired MediaDefender for $42.5 million in cash.

In May 2008, MediaDefender performed a [[Denial-of-service attack|distributed-denial-of-service]] attack on [[Revision3]], despite the fact that they were not hosting unauthorized materials. Jim Louderback, Revision3's CEO, charged that these attacks violated the [[Economic Espionage Act]] and the [[Computer Fraud and Abuse Act]]. As of May 2008, the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] was investigating the incident.<ref>
{{cite web |last=Paul |first=Ryan |date=30 May 2008 |title=Revision3 CEO: Blackout caused by MediaDefender attack |url=https://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080529-revision3-ceo-blackout-caused-by-mediadefender-attack.html |accessdate=2008-05-30 |publisher=arstechnica.com}}
</ref>

In August 2009, [[ARTISTdirect]] restructured '''MediaDefender''' and [[MediaSentry]], creating [[Peer Media Technologies]].

==Miivi.com==
In February 2007, MediaDefender launched a video sharing site called Miivi.com. On July 4, 2007, file-sharing news site [[TorrentFreak]] alleged that Miivi.com was created to trap uploaders of copyrighted content.<ref name="TorrentFreak-Anti-PiracyGang">{{Cite web |last=Van der Sar |first=Ernesto |date=4 July 2007 |title=Anti-Piracy Gang Launches their own Video Download Site to Trap People |url=https://torrentfreak.com/anti-piracy-gang-launches-their-own-video-download-site-to-trap-people/ |access-date=17 September 2007 |website=TorrentFreak |language=en}}</ref><ref>[http://news.digitaltrends.com/news/story/13480/mpaa_dummy_site_snares_pirates "MPAA Dummy Site Snares Pirates"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927014737/http://news.digitaltrends.com/news/story/13480/mpaa_dummy_site_snares_pirates |date=2007-09-27 }} ''DigitalTrends.com'' </ref> The site's origins were discovered by a [[blog]]ger who looked up Miivi.com [[domain registration]] information.<ref>[http://www.zeropaid.com/news/8877/Gotcha!+New+MPAA+Site+Tries+to+Trick+Users+into+Illegally+Downloading+Movies "Domain Registration Information"]</ref>{{Citation needed|date=February 2024}}

After the allegation was re-posted throughout the [[blogosphere]], Miivi.com was shut down on July 4, 2007.<ref>[http://www.zeropaid.com/news/8880/Fake+MPAA+Video+Download+Site+Goes+Offline "Miivi.com goes down"]</ref> In an interview with [[Ars Technica]], chief executive [[Randy Saaf]] stated that "MediaDefender was working on an internal project that involved video and didn't realize that people would be trying to go to it and so we didn't password-protect the site".<ref name="ArsTechnicaJuly6">{{Cite web |last=Cheng |first=Jacqui |date=2007-07-06 |title=MediaDefender denies entrapment accusations with fake torrent site |url=https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2007/07/mediadefender-denies-entrapment-accusations-with-fake-torrent-site/ |access-date=16 September 2007 |website=Ars Technica |language=en-us}}</ref> MediaDefender blamed file-sharing groups such as [[The Pirate Bay]] for starting the story.<ref name="ArsTechnicaJuly6"/> Following MediaDefender's subsequent email leak, TorrentFreak alleged that MediaDefender's statement was revealed to be a deliberate falsehood. Saaf denied that MiiVi was "a devious product" and that the company aimed to entrap users, stating only that it was part of MediaDefender's "trade secrets."<ref>McBride, Sarah (September 17, 2007). "[http://www.moneyweb.co.za/mw/view/mw/en/page94?oid=161203&sn=Detail Antipiracy group suffers email leak]". ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]''. Retrieved on September 16, 2007.</ref><ref name="TorrentFreak-TheBiggestEver">{{Cite web |last=Van der Sar |first=Ernesto |date=15 September 2007 |title=The Biggest Ever BitTorrent Leak: MediaDefender Internal Emails Go Public * TorrentFreak |url=https://torrentfreak.com/mediadefender-emails-leaked-070915/ |access-date=16 September 2007 |language=en}}</ref>

The [[MPAA]] denied any involvement with MediaDefender.<ref name="ArsTechnicaJuly6"/> On September 14, 2007, internal emails from MediaDefender were leaked on to [[BitTorrent (protocol)|BitTorrent]] file sharing networks, which contradicted MediaDefender's claims of MiiVi being an "internal test site," revealing additional detailed [[information]] about the website and that the site was closed when the connection between it and MediaDefender became public knowledge. It was scheduled to be re-launched as www.viide.com, but has not yet been opened up to the public.<ref name="TorrentFreak-Anti-PiracyGang"/>

== Leaked information ==
Beginning on September 14, 2007, MediaDefender experienced a security breach caused by a group of hackers led by high school student "Ethan". This group called themselves MediaDefender-Defenders.<ref>[http://www.portfolio.com/news-markets/national-news/portfolio/2008/01/14/Media-Defenders-Profile?print=true Media Defenders Profile - National Business News - Print - Portfolio.com<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> According to an SEC filing, this ultimately cost parent company [[ARTISTdirect]] at least $825,000.<ref>[http://www.irconnect.com/mc/irc/secfilings.mc?cmd=disp&id=5543752&type=HTML ARTISTDIRECT INC (Form: 10QSB, Received: 11/14/2007 16:07:22)<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071123102516/http://www.irconnect.com/mc/irc/secfilings.mc?cmd=disp&id=5543752&type=HTML |date=2007-11-23 }}</ref> The breach included emails, a phone conversation, and a number of internal anti-infringement tools, including some source code.

===Leaked e-mails===
On September 14, 2007, 6,621 of the company's internal [[e-mail]]s were leaked, containing information contradicting previous statements and details of strategies intended to deceive copyright infringers. The emails link MediaDefender to projects that management previously denied involvement in. The [[Associated Press]] and other media outlets suggest that the leak may confirm speculation that MiiVi.com was an anti-copyright infringement "[[Honeypot (computing)|honeypot]]" site.<ref name="AssociatedPress9-18-2007">Veiga, Alex (September 18, 2007). "[https://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/computersecurity/hacking/2007-09-18-mediadefender-leak_N.htm?csp=34 Hackers leak anti-piracy firm's e-mails]". [[Associated Press]]. Retrieved on September 19, 2007.</ref><ref name="SCMagazine">Carr, Jim (September 18, 2007). "[http://www.scmagazineus.com/Stolen-emails-reveal-anti-piracy-companys-honeypot-strategy/article/35701/ Stolen emails reveal anti-copyright infringement company's 'honeypot' strategy] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071016195004/http://www.scmagazineus.com/Stolen-emails-reveal-anti-piracy-companys-honeypot-strategy/article/35701/ |date=2007-10-16 }}". ''SC Magazine US''. Retrieved on September 19, 2007.</ref> One e-mail suggests using the [[MiiVi]] client program to turn users' PCs into drones for MediaDefender's [[eMule]] spoofing activities. The leaked e-mails discuss responses to unexpected and negative press, and expose upcoming projects, problems in and around the office, [[Domino's]] pizza orders, and other personal information about employees. Beyond strategic information, the leak also exposed login information for [[FTP]] and [[MySQL]] servers, making available a large library of [[MP3]] files likely including artists represented by MediaDefender's clients. The emails also revealed that MediaDefender probably was negotiating with the New York Attorney General's office to allow them access to information about users accessing pornographic material.<ref name="ArsTechnicaSep16" /> As of September 15, 2007, there had been no official response from the company.<ref name="TorrentFreak-TheBiggestEver"/> However, evidence exists that MediaDefender had been employing both legal and illegal actions to remove copies of the leaked emails from their respective hosting sites. In addition to the usual [[cease and desist|cease-and-desist letters]] from their legal department, IP addresses that are owned by MediaDefender were found to have been used in [[denial-of-service attack]]s against sites hosting the leaked emails.<ref>[https://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070919-p2p-sites-ridicule-mediadefender-takedown-notices-in-wake-of-e-mail-leak.html P2P sites ridicule MediaDefender takedown notices in wake of e-mail leak] arstechnica.com</ref>

The e-mails also revealed direction by MediaDefender founder [[Randy Saaf]] to have developer Ben Ebert attempt to eliminate the information about MiiVi from MediaDefender's [[English Wikipedia]] entry.<ref name="ArsTechnicaSep16">[https://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070916-leaked-media-defender-e-mails-reveal-secret-government-project.html Leaked Media Defender e-mails reveal secret government project]</ref> Ebert responds in an email on the same day saying, "I will attempt to get all {{sic|References}} to miivi removed from wiki. I should easily be able to get It contested. We'll see if I can get rid of it."<ref name="MediaDefenderEmail">[http://www.mediadefender-defenders.com/msg03754.html Re: MiiVi got Dugg<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071016200639/http://mediadefender-defenders.com/msg03754.html |date=2007-10-16 }}</ref>

=== Leaked phone conversation ===
On September 16, 2007, MediaDefender-Defenders released a 25-minute excerpt of a phone conversation between the [[New York State Attorney General|New York Attorney General's]] office and MediaDefender as a [[BitTorrent (protocol)|torrent]] on The Pirate Bay. MediaDefender-Defenders claims in information released with the phone conversation that they have infiltrated the "internals" of the company.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Van der Sar |first=Ernesto |date=16 September 2007 |title=MediaDefender Phone Call and Gnutella Tracking Database Leaked |url=https://torrentfreak.com/more-mediadefender-leaks-070916/ |access-date=2024-02-02 |website=TorrentFreak |language=en}}</ref>

===Leaked source code===
On September 20, 2007, MediaDefender-Defenders released the source code of TrapperKeeper, MediaDefender's decoy systems on The Pirate Bay.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Van der Sar |first=Ernesto |date=20 September 2007 |title=MediaDefender Anti-Piracy Tools Leaked |url=https://torrentfreak.com/mediadefender-anti-piracy-tools-leaked-070920/ |access-date=2024-02-02 |website=TorrentFreak |language=en}}</ref> A large chunk of MediaDefender's [[software]] was available by Bittorrent.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2007-09-25 |title=MediaDefender source code leaked to wibble |url=http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=42516 |access-date=2024-02-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070925051250/http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=42516 |archive-date=2007-09-25 }}</ref>

==Revision3 controversy==
[[Revision3]] is an [[Internet television|Internet television network]] which distributes video content legally through various means, including the BitTorrent protocol. During the [[Memorial Day]] weekend in 2008, Revision3 came under a [[Denial of Service]] attack originating from MediaDefender IP addresses. The attack left the company's service inaccessible until mid-Tuesday the following week. Revision3 CEO [[Jim Louderback]] accused MediaDefender of injecting its [[Spoofing (anti-piracy measure)|decoy files]] into Revision3's BitTorrent service through a [[Vulnerability (computing)|vulnerability]], then automatically perpetrating the attack after Revision3 increased security.<ref>[http://revision3.com/blog/2008/05/29/inside-the-attack-that-crippled-revision3 Inside the Attack that Crippled Revision3] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130721014755/http://revision3.com/blog/2008/05/29/inside-the-attack-that-crippled-revision3/ |date=2013-07-21 }}</ref><ref>[http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-fi-outage30-2008may30,0,4328786.story Anti-piracy misfire blamed for crash of popular online TV network]</ref>

Randy Saaf defended MediaDefender's actions by stating "Our systems were targeting a tracker not even knowing it was Revision3's tracker", adding that the denial-of-service attack resulted when "Revision3 changed some configurations" to their [[BitTorrent tracker]].<ref>{{cite magazine |title=MediaDefender Defends Revision3 SYN Attack |date=2008-05-31 |magazine=[[Wired (magazine)|Wired]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230327230304/https://www.wired.com/2008/05/mediadefender-d/ |archive-date=2023-03-27 |url-status=live |url=https://www.wired.com/2008/05/mediadefender-d}}</ref>

== See also ==
* [[Copyright social conflict]]
* [[Cyberterrorism]]
* [[BayTSP]]
* [[Streisand effect]]
* [[Torrent poisoning]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* [http://www.mediadefender.com/ MediaDefender's Official Website]
* [http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r19629941-Net2EZ-owned-by-MediaDefender Net2EZ owned by Media Defender]
* [https://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070916-leaked-media-defender-e-mails-reveal-secret-government-project.html "Leaked Media Defender e-mails reveal secret government project"] - Arstechnica
* [http://torrentfreak.com/mpaa-caught-uploading-fake-torrents/ "MPAA Caught Uploading Fake Torrents"] &mdash; ''TorrentFreak'' (IP addresses of fake torrents traced back to MediaDefender)
* [http://torrentfreak.com/anti-piracy-gang-launches-their-own-video-download-site-to-trap-people/ "Anti-Piracy Gang Launches their own Video Download Site to Trap People"] &mdash; ''TorrentFreak'' (The domain registration of a fake video upload/download service called ''miivi'' has been traced to MediaDefender.)
* [http://torrentfreak.com/mediadefender-emails-leaked-070915/ Torrent Freak article about the 9/14/2007 Media Defender internal email leak]
* [https://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070919-p2p-sites-ridicule-mediadefender-takedown-notices-in-wake-of-e-mail-leak.html P2P sites ridicule MediaDefender takedown notices in wake of e-mail leak]
* [http://torrentfreak.com/mediadefender-anti-piracy-tools-leaked-070920/ Post of a list of leaked Programs.]
* [http://torrentfreak.com/mediadefender-parent-company-facing-liquidation-080226/ Torrentfreak's article on Media defender problems]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mediadefender}}
[[Category:Copyright enforcement companies]]
[[Category:Cybercrime]]
[[Category:Defunct online companies of the United States]]