Virgin Media is set to delve into users' traffic looking for copyright infringement, in the online equivalent of opening your post -- and not telling you. It's the first ISP to try deep packet inspection with the controversial Detica CView technology, which will ascertain levels of illegal music file sharing across the Virgin network.
The trial will see Virgin monitoring 40 per cent of its customers, but none of these customers will be informed whether they are being checked out. Virgin insist that any data accumulated will be anonymous.
The technology used is called CView, created by a company called Detica and based on the same technology that powered the controversial Phorm. CView looks at Web traffic, spots peer-to-peer packets, and takes a look inside. It then collects data if the files being shared are considered to be infringing copyright, based on information from record companies. It's the equivalent of the Royal Mail opening every parcel to see if there's a CD inside, and making a note if there isn't a receipt in there too.
The data is anonymised and totalled up, as the goal is an overall picture of the extent of the problem. Virgin reckons no human will be able to access information on individual users. Individual users will not be penalised during this trial if material is found that CView thinks infringes copyright.
This is the sort of information ISPs could be required to collect in order to satisfy the Digital Economy Bill. Ofcom is reportedly considering CView to measure the 70 per cent reduction in piracy that will count infringement notification as a success. If this nebulous target isn't met, the government will open the way for rights holders to take users to court and have them disconnected.
Are you a Virgin Media user -- or have you been thinking of signing up? Will this news change your decision? The Digital Economy Bill makes this kind of thing seem a sad inevitability, but that doesn't mean we have to be happy about it. Or if we're not doing anything wrong then you've got nothing to worry about, right? Tell us your thoughts in the comments.
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aphra 1 August, 2010 14:37
I occasionally download stuff from TheBox. Usually this is because I have missed recording CORRIE from ITV. I send it every month to a friend in the States. I did a favour for a colleague last week and tried to download an obscure film made in 2000 for him which he had posted to his sister and which has gone missing in the post. It was incredibly slow in downloading and after two days I stopped it. Now I find that I can no longer download using Vuze. I am a Virgin broadband customer and suspect that I have been cut off. Is this likely?
Anonymous 6 August, 2010 22:21
I do file share and currently use the Utorrent software to share a single file over the network which is the latest game client for lord of the rings online. A 9.68 gig file completely endorsed by code masters who own the european rights for the games distribution. People can download the client for free from codemasters themselves, however to actually use the client software to gain access to the game they have to set up an account with codemasters and then BUY the keycode from codemasters to activate the game on their newly made CM account. My question is. Can this packet sniffing software really distinquish between my legally allowed file and other illegal files or will it simply register a p2p file being seeded for all and sundry to DL ?
Anonymous 7 November, 2010 16:51
right i can see that the point of this is infringement of copyright and the point of this is for virgin is that thay have there own record lable right so can see there point on this.
secondly GCHQ monitor internet traffic as well mostly for the perpose of terrorists activity and monitor phone email and internet traffic i just want to say a fue things that just might open your eyes a bit more to what goes on in the dark side (a) if a program has been righten by some one then it can be cracked by someone alse this is fact (b) if by chance you get court by virgin or the government you get cut off or fined with a court appereance if the you have been downloading from the virgin lable yes it is elegle but on the other hand it is a civil matter not crimmineal you got me so far .
and a nother thing if thay do track you internet activertey thay can just say it's for markiting perposes then thay are perfictley in the right as it is in there contract to you and to them so to me i dont think that you can win on this one at all so sorry if i am wrong but i wood like to here your coment on this you can wmail me at the address nickg@nickgalbraith.i8.com
Anonymous 22 November, 2010 07:06
anonymous 27 November, 2009 20:25
my wireless network is unencrypted anybody could be downloading them files
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Most ISP's will tell you its your (the bill payer) responsibilty to control what is happening on your connection. I could download a million and on mp3's over my neigbours connection and it would be them that get in to trouble and vise versa.
I myself was looking into taking up a contract with Virgin after leaving BT after just 6 weeks for their lies. But after this i think i will be going else where, nobody has the right to snoop through our data same as royal mail dont have the right to snoop through our mail or anybody else!