You run an elite site? Don't be a putz Read this!! I was on a Hotline site today, talking to on of the Admins there, and I was made aware that some people are blissfully unaware of the risks that they take in the warez scene. He was selling an archival CD of his site- only rom images, and being a jerk about the reality of the risks involved, got all pissy, made a few lame arguments & kicked me off his site. In that light I have quickly penned this doc, which I would like everyone to spread all over, so that the Admins can have some idea of the risks they take, and can take proper precautions to cover their asses. Ignorant viewpoint #1. "I won't get caught." This sometimes translates to "They have bigger things to worry about than me", "There are others doing more/worse", and sometimes even the infamous "but I'm not doing anyhing wrong." The Job of the Feds is to bust lawbreakers. Some of the laws are stupid, and some of the lawbreakers are smart, but if your balls get caught in the vise, don't cry to me. If we're all lucky, nothing will happen, no-one will get busted. But I don't play lotto either... Ignorant viewpoint #2. "I don't have any warez on my site." It's hard to be squeaky clean. Any illegal distribution of corpyrighted material can get you busted. You. Yeah you. Warez? obviously. Rom carts? Yeah. Nintendo gets a hard-on for that shit. Even if the company that owns the license doesn't sue you, your day in court won't be a good one. Cracks? Serial #'s? Depends on how bad a day the judge has had & what state you're in, Maybe even the lunar cycle. Applying them is illegal, currently having them isn't, but I'm sure it doesn't help your case. MP3's? Probably. I forget how long it is before music copyrights expire, but I'm sure you don't listen to the shit that has. Nudie JPG's? Movies? (AVI's, Moov's, ect). doesn't matter. Feds hate porn. Makes them look even better to bust pornmongers such as yourself. Even if you're only distributing or archiving or backing up or whatever. Legal semantics do not impress a judge who's been told to burn your ass for politics. Unless your argument is airtight and defensable (AND you have a LAWYER), you might as well not have any opinion. Ignorant viewpoint #3. "I can sell the service of burning the CD." Sure you can. Just as the judge can sell the service of burning your ass. You sell at any price over cost+shipping- that's profit- plain & simple. I mean sure, you have distrubution with intent to sell, You can argue the point in court if you want, but making money attracts attention from the feds faster than you can say "I'm fucked". In case you want a quick lesson in history, the government has never appreciated any profit being made by anyone that they couldn't get their share of. Making a profit off of warez is just like spitting in their eye & saying 'fuck you'. Yeah. Bring your own vaseline. Ignorant viewpoint #4. "Anyone who mentions Feds is an asshole." No. You're an asshole. Maybe someone's just trying to help your sorry ass out by letting you know that you're taking a risk. Stupid fuck. It's more than a game. It's your ass. You wanna give it away, prepare to have it fucked. That is what most people do when offered some virgin tail. So what am I saying? Quit spreading warez? Run like a bitch and pack up your shit? Yeah. if you are that's exactly what I'm saying. The warez scene doesn't need you, you add to silly statistics & make the rest of us look bad. Just use your head. Start at the top, work your way down. Make a plan. novel idea that, Thinking & planning? Not at all like leeching and kicking fellow leechers for the ego boost. Very expensive toy, power. Make sure you don't overpay. Plan #1. I will plan not to get caught. If your door got kicked in right *now*, would your ass be handed to you? Yeah, you thought your site was private- who the fuck let the feds in? Now your mom is flat on her stomach in her nightgown, cussing, screaming & crying, but do you know anything more than you've pissed your pants & are gonna have a lot of time on your hands? Stupid fuck. Do something about it. if you make a plan to use 10 minutes effectively, you might get a chance to save your ass. Of course no HD that a warez mogul such as yourself is gonna have will format irrecoverably in 10 minutes. Better try harder. Removable media rules. Like the sound of that music? I like Jaz too. Radio Shack sells magnets cheap. Don't consider them a risk, think of them as 'insurance'. CD's are easy to break a few at a time- don't get carried away unless you have a vat of acid nearby. Plan #2. I will leave no tangible evidence. A record of transfers from the feds incriminates, but a hard drive baked to the gills with wares just fries your ass. Figure something out. Encryption. Passwords. Trojans. Virii. Be clever, and be damn clever. You have to realize they deal with your kind everyday. They'll laugh at any feeble attempt to thwart them, and hold it against you if it fails. Plan #3. I will leave money the fuck alone. Yeah, we all want it, but you better not take it for warez, dipshit. You might as well be selling drugs. Matter of fact, pretend you're selling drugs, you can only help yourself by being that careful. Donations? fine. Donations for wares? "Hello? Anyone home?" Don't be stupid. You might as well call your wares site a religious shrine with devotional CD relics for all the good that lame-ass ploy will do you. You took money. You gave out CD's. Fuck the paperwork, you can wipe the cum from your ass with it. Plan #4. I will assume everyone could be a fed. On the internet you don't know who anyone is. Guess what? Feds can actually _pretend_ to be real people. Some have friends, families, and some even did what you're doing now (and might've been better at it too). Anyone you talk to might be the man. Even that girl. And being paranoid about it and acting like an asshole won't make you fed-proof- it just makes you look like a paranoid asshole. If someone is a fed, and you're talking to them, and you know they're a threat, being a putz will just put your dumb ass on the top of the 'balls to bust' list. Act oblivious- not like you're suddenly an amnesiac or evasive, just that everything's hunkey-dorey, ok-fine untill they go away, all the while you're taking care of business. When you pull the plug, you go on a warez vacation. Don't be stupid. The legal process is slow, and if you start hacking & shit in a week you might as well not have bothered- they probably didn't even plan on coming down for a while, & then they're gonna watch for a bit before they kick in your door- but you never know. A couple quickie no-brainer rules (to help you get caught). Give out your e-mail address if you want trouble. Give out your snail mail address if you want trouble. Post either of the above on some yutz's server. Use the same alias all the time to be positively trackable. Download to the same ip all the time. Mail warez to strangers. When doing the above, use a return address. Charge money for warez. Keep your site up 24/7, never change ip. Keep all the wares where everyone can see them. Think your site being private makes you safe. Think that the Hotline warez scene (or whatever) will last forever. Remeber: You won't get caught. I'd sign this doc straight out, but I run a (passably) elite site, & I'm enough of a realist to not wanna piss the feds off by letting them know who it was me that tried to make their job a bit more challenging. Those of you who know my style will recognize my handiwork... As for the Feds- Shooting fish in a barrel just may have gotten a little bit harder. ___ | 01 | (globe=)-((lager=)-(buzzing insect))+((chain=)-L)+(­hers) | ° | (angry=)+(fly appendage=)-(2x(You)) |____|