Feds Shut Down Megaupload.com

[Aiel]

Funny thing is: Anonymous, the hacking group, took down universal and department of justice hours after this.

rather then Ddosing them they should hack and black them out with anti-SOPA messages.

[Omar]

This is enraging. What can we do, in the US as well as abroad?

[Danqazmlp]

Funny thing is: Anonymous, the hacking group, took down universal and department of justice hours after this.

rather then Ddosing them they should hack and black them out with anti-SOPA messages.

 

No, they shouldn't do a damn thing. If any single body of people have hurt the case for internet freedom in the eyes of the mass public it is Anonymous. Anonymous are the online equivalent of rioters. They just make the situation a whole lot worse, and people who didn't have a strong opinion sure as well form one quickly after.

 

Surely the actions in the last few days with Wikipedia and many other sites doing PEACEFUL online protests which highlighted the need for freedoms showed that hacking/Ddos'ing and all the other crap is not the way to go. The Wikipedia blackout made world news in an incredibly positive way, hacking will do the complete opposite and incite massive retaliation.

 

 

 

Anyway, not sure about Megaupload as I've never used it, but I didn't know Megavideo was used for anything BUT piracy.

[chenw]

Another one in the name of the Rich instead of the oppresed

 

Nice one Do"J"...

[Orpheus]

Funny thing is: Anonymous, the hacking group, took down universal and department of justice hours after this.

rather then Ddosing them they should hack and black them out with anti-SOPA messages.

 

No, they shouldn't do a damn thing. If any single body of people have hurt the case for internet freedom in the eyes of the mass public it is Anonymous. Anonymous are the online equivalent of rioters. They just make the situation a whole lot worse, and people who didn't have a strong opinion sure as well form one quickly after.

 

Surely the actions in the last few days with Wikipedia and many other sites doing PEACEFUL online protests which highlighted the need for freedoms showed that hacking/Ddos'ing and all the other crap is not the way to go. The Wikipedia blackout made world news in an incredibly positive way, hacking will do the complete opposite and incite massive retaliation.

 

Anyway, not sure about Megaupload as I've never used it, but I didn't know Megavideo was used for anything BUT piracy.

 

What other options are out there? We tried peaceful protests, and despite this they've still went against the will of the average citizen. The gov't clearly doesn't listen to it's citizens, nor does the corrupt record corporations. This is the only thing that's going to make them listen. We could also murder every SOPA/PIPA supporter in Congress, alongside the head honchos of the MPAA, UMG, RIAA, etc. The protest was a wise action, but despite that they didn't listen. Physical action to stop them is absolutely necessary at this point.

 

Nearly all of them in that criteria have shown nothing but a callous disregard for their citizens or customers, respectively. As the saying goes, the tree of Liberty from time to time must be watered with the blood of patriots and tyrants.

[Sprint]

I like how they mentioned that SOPA and PIPA were going to stop online piracy. As if saying anyone in the protest was all for online piracy. This isn't fox news is it?

 

It's unfortunate, but did they really need to shut down the entire site instead of just removing the uploads and arresting the violators? They're kind of proving the point, that instead of battling piracy by just going after it, they'll just shut down entire websites. Maybe we missed something here, were the people uploading the content in question the heads of the company?

 

Though I haven't pirated anything since the days of limewire, and I stopped using that years before it shut down.

[Dizzle229]

[spoiler=Legit?]http://109.236.83.66/

[Sbrideau]

[spoiler=Legit?]http://109.236.83.66/

 

It's only legit if they bring back everything that they had on their servers. If they don't then it's not.

[sees_all1]

I wish everyone would grow up, on all sides.

 

Was talking to a friend irl about this, he was ticked off that megaupload was taken down. He said that they were equivalent to youtube in terms of what they did, and they were blameless because they had a policy against uploading other people's copy-written materials, same as youtube. He also said that they "regularly took things down that violated their policy," and that he's "found dead links all the time" to those things.

 

He got mad at me when I pointed out that he was using it to pirate media, and said it wasn't about him, it was about how they could be taken down when "other's uploaded it and violated their policy," and "they're blameless."

 

Orly.

 

 

This all boils down to copy-write and intellectual property. As a software developer, I like getting paid for my work. As an inventor, I like getting a 20 year monopoly on my ideas for teaching the world how to do something completely new.

However, I don't think any government should actively seek to find small time copy-write violators (it oversteps the whole "need a warrant" and right to privacy). I don't think people or corporations should be allowed to sue for disproportionate amounts of "lost revenue." A $1 song illegally downloaded isn't worth $10,000.

Having said that, as consumers it is our moral responsibility to not break the law or illegally upload stuff that isn't ours. We're not off the hook for taking things that aren't ours.

 

The argument against SOPA and other similar legislation is completely illegitimate if the ones [bleep]ing the loudest are the reason the law is going into place.

Don't like SOPA? Quit giving them a reason to enact it.

[i_love_burritos]

This all boils down to copy-write and intellectual property.

 

lol No

[Assume Nothing]

It's not Intellectual Property or Piracy they're worried about. They want to censor the internet like the way Kim Jung Il, or China did - internationally.

[sees_all1]

It's not Intellectual Property or Piracy they're worried about. They want to censor the internet like the way Kim Jung Il, or China did - internationally.

It's not censorship if you don't have the right to put it up.

 

edit:right as in IP... content you own.

[Orpheus]

It's not Intellectual Property or Piracy they're worried about. They want to censor the internet like the way Kim Jung Il, or China did - internationally.

It's not censorship if you don't have the right to put it up.

 

edit:right as in IP... content you own.

 

That's understandable (in reference to you being a developer/inventor), except these bills are already problematic. Enter the curious case of Dajaz1, which is the exact problem I'm worried about. Seizing a website without due process is a problem I don't want to become commonplace. Despite the fact Megaupload's takedown was the result of law enforcement agencies working together for months, there has still been no due process that I'm aware of requiring it's takedown.

 

As for your concerns regarding SOPA, I'll bite. Be a bit more specific on this. I'm curious as to what you think is causing SOPA to become a potential piece of legislation. I'll just say this much though: There's a ton of lobbying regarding SOPA, and they're sending tons of cash to these legislators to try to fast-track a bill like this. I've read the entire bill. It won't even solve the problem it's setting out to solve, and it sets a horrible precedent in addition to being too broad. I could go on for HOURS ON END explaining why this bill is wrong in almost every way imaginable, it's that horribly written.

 

I do think IP protection and copyright protection is fine, it's just that there needs to be some changes, because the current way isn't working as well as it could. For one, make the expiration on a trademark/copyright before it becomes public domain shorter. Seventy+ years after the death of an author/designer/developer of a work is a tad extreme. This is also random rambling, so disregard it unless you have something to say regarding it.

[miracleman58]

If they shut down a site that has a system very similar to youtube to take down copyrighted videos, I guess Youtube might be next.

 

This sucks. I need to find an anti-sopa signature.

 

Would they really dare take on Youtube?

[sees_all1]

It's not Intellectual Property or Piracy they're worried about. They want to censor the internet like the way Kim Jung Il, or China did - internationally.

It's not censorship if you don't have the right to put it up.

 

edit:right as in IP... content you own.

 

That's understandable (in reference to you being a developer/inventor), except these bills are already problematic. Enter the curious case of Dajaz1, which is the exact problem I'm worried about. Seizing a website without due process is a problem I don't want to become commonplace. Despite the fact Megaupload's takedown was the result of law enforcement agencies working together for months, there has still been no due process that I'm aware of requiring it's takedown.

 

As for your concerns regarding SOPA, I'll bite. Be a bit more specific on this. I'm curious as to what you think is causing SOPA to become a potential piece of legislation. I'll just say this much though: There's a ton of lobbying regarding SOPA, and they're sending tons of cash to these legislators to try to fast-track a bill like this. I've read the entire bill. It won't even solve the problem it's setting out to solve, and it sets a horrible precedent in addition to being too broad. I could go on for HOURS ON END explaining why this bill is wrong in almost every way imaginable, it's that horribly written.

 

I do think IP protection and copyright protection is fine, it's just that there needs to be some changes, because the current way isn't working as well as it could. For one, make the expiration on a trademark/copyright before it becomes public domain shorter. Seventy+ years after the death of an author/designer/developer of a work is a tad extreme. This is also random rambling, so disregard it unless you have something to say regarding it.

 

I'm all in favor of "comprehensive" legislation, so long as it is "comprehensive" and not just another boondoggle add on. Comprehensive would mean, "hey look-it, we've got more than 70,000 pages of laws on the books. If we can write something solid to cover everything in under 1,000, and throw the other 69,000 out," I'm all ears.

 

I prefer to keep intellectual property as a civil matter. If the feds decide to prosecute you for copyright infringement and you end up being fined $250,000, a large portion of that money better be going to the copyright owner and not Uncle Sam. The biggest problem here is that for international cases like this, I can't sue a guy in New Zealand, so the Federal Government does have a right to step in and enforce my rights as determined in trade agreements, etc.

[The Dark Lord]

[spoiler=Legit?]http://109.236.83.66/

 

It's only legit if they bring back everything that they had on their servers. If they don't then it's not.

 

Pretty sure it's a phishing site.

[Guest jrhairychest]

It's not Intellectual Property or Piracy they're worried about. They want to censor the internet like the way Kim Jung Il, or China did - internationally.

It's not censorship if you don't have the right to put it up.

 

edit:right as in IP... content you own.

 

For a change I quite agree with your comments Sees.

 

Its the classic theyve taken it away so it must be censorship excuse. The last time I looked I believe it was still against the law to publicly broadcast copyrighted material without permission, something many on this forum seem to forget as they flick past the copyright warnings on their DVDs or music. The likes of the music industry etc. are losing a fortune because many think its their god given right to use this stuff or download it without payment. Yet, many use phrases such as Those corporate execs are rich anyway or are ripping us off as a way of justifying theft. Some should try going into an expensive shop and walking out with the goods. Just say hey, its too expensive so why should I pay for it?. Good luck in court.

 

I agree with whats happening. If anyone on this forum created something and the rest used it without permission or payment, theyd be the first to whinge about it. Reality check.

[RpgGamer]

Aww :(

 

I loved megaupload.

 

I swear, if they take megavideo, I will take violent action.

 

MegaUpload, MegaVideo and all of its sister sites are all gone.

 

There will be blood.

 

seriously. I still had a season and a half of Skins[uK] to watch. If I do not see them [along with a good portion of other data] replaced within a year, I will do radically stupid things to prove meaningless points to people who won't listen [ie: rage at politicians]

[Range_This11]

I'm sorry dude, but this quote was said in the context of the horrific apartheid system in South Africa at its height in the mid-1980s. I don't know how readily it should be applied to Megaupload being shut down. I don't agree with the shut down, but the quote is a little dramatic for these circumstances :lol:

[Sy_Accursed]

I'm sorry dude, but this quote was said in the context of the horrific apartheid system in South Africa at its height in the mid-1980s. I don't know how readily it should be applied to Megaupload being shut down. I don't agree with the shut down, but the quote is a little dramatic for these circumstances :lol:

 

It fits perfectly.

Universal flexed its corporate muscle over the fact megaupload often gets copyrighted material put on it (even though they oppose this and do their best to remove it) and got it shut down because of this. As a medium of sharing things fairly (eg your own work) this makes megaupload a tool of free speech. To shut it down for such a bogus reason is unjust and oppressive; besides if you ignore the small things you lose ground to face the big things as the rights to do so have been eroded away from underneath you will you sat there being apathetic as it 'wasn't a big deal'. It's how the nazis worked, they made a few little changes here and there that people weren't best pleased about and then by the time they made the big changes so much free speech and civil liberty had been eroded it was near impossible to oppose them from within Germany.

[Racheya]

I'm extremely angry about this. They have NO right to take Megaupload & Megavideo down.

 

They complied with current copyright law as far as they can be expected to. If a company informed them that there was copyright infringing material, they took it down immediately. Megaupload didn't go out and TELL pirates to come upload stuff to their site. It just happened because they're actually one of the few really good sites for it. I've used it to transfer all sorts of files before (legally, I might add).

 

For this to happen the day after the SOPA protests feels wrong. It's like their reaction to the protest was to take down a site that has no right being taken down. I hope that when this gets to the courts, Megaupload will win. I also support any actions Anonymous takes in protest of this because it is completely unjust. Yeah, DDosing UMG, RIAA & MPAA sites won't really do anything but it's the best they can do to make the point.

[Sbrideau]

If they shut down a site that has a system very similar to youtube to take down copyrighted videos, I guess Youtube might be next.

 

This sucks. I need to find an anti-sopa signature.

 

Would they really dare take on Youtube?

I'm pretty sure they would. With SOPA/PIPA they'd even be able to take down Google (and other search engines), Facebook Twitter just for linking to copyrighted content.

[Danqazmlp]

Aww :(

 

I loved megaupload.

 

I swear, if they take megavideo, I will take violent action.

 

MegaUpload, MegaVideo and all of its sister sites are all gone.

 

There will be blood.

 

seriously. I still had a season and a half of Skins[uK] to watch. If I do not see them [along with a good portion of other data] replaced within a year, I will do radically stupid things to prove meaningless points to people who won't listen [ie: rage at politicians]

 

Because that sure doesn't prove that they were right to take it down in some way does it? (Unless you were paying to watch it)

[Guest jrhairychest]

I'm sorry dude, but this quote was said in the context of the horrific apartheid system in South Africa at its height in the mid-1980s. I don't know how readily it should be applied to Megaupload being shut down. I don't agree with the shut down, but the quote is a little dramatic for these circumstances :lol:

 

I think first of all you have to have an injustice in the first place. Where's the injustice exactly? The fact that people may now have to *shock horror* either pay to use copyrighted material or obtain it legitimately from it's source instead of being made freely available to all?

[tripsis]

I think first of all you have to have an injustice in the first place. Where's the injustice exactly? The fact that people may now have to *shock horror* either pay to use copyrighted material or obtain it legitimately from it's source instead of being made freely available to all?

People aren't upset because they are not unable to get copyrighted material. The point is that this website was shut down because some people used it for uploading copyrighted material, despite the facts that the admins always removed copyrighted material when it came to their attention, the site had many legitimate uses, and the purpose of the site was not to provide copyrighted material free to all. The feds are blaming the admins for the actions of the users. It's like shutting down YouTube because a few of the users upload copyrighted material. There are still SO MANY legitimate uses for YouTube. It's not a piracy site.