"Copyright Violation" Malware

[Conor]

http://www.f-secure.com/weblog/archives/00001931.html

There's a new extortion trojan in circulation.

This one attempts to steal victims' money by bullying them to pay a "pre-trial settlement" to cover a "Copyright holder fine".

The victim is informed that an "Antipiracy foundation scanner" has found illegal torrents from the system. If he won't pay $400 (via a credit card transaction), he might face jail time and huge fines.

It appears to be an attempt to steal credit card details,

[DawnFalcon]

....So no different to the RIAA's extortion efforts then.

(why yes, I may be being mildly sarcastic)

[poohbear_nc]

There was a similar scam a year or so ago. Our company has its own website with photos on it (all obtained legally). We received a demand for money stating that one of the photos was the property of a company which had never given permission for its use. It went on to state (in legalese phrases) that ignorance of the true owner was no excuse from paying to use it, and we owed fees from the day we put it online. BUT - to avoid all legal complications - if we were willing to fork over $1500 up front, all would be forgiven.

[Worldwalker]

Another fun benefit from a legal system that is dedicated to protecting the profits of a handful of large corporations at the expense of citizens, smaller businesses, etc.: fake extortionists piggybacking on the fear created by the real extortionists. Are you considering candidates' stances on intellectual property laws in your next election, wherever/whenever it is?

[luqmaninbmore]

That would be assuming that candidates have stances on this issue. It's more of a "pay no attention to that man behind the curtain" thing, at least in the US.

[Greg Anos]

Originally Posted by Worldwalker

Another fun benefit from a legal system that is dedicated to protecting the profits of a handful of large corporations at the expense of citizens, smaller businesses, etc.: fake extortionists piggybacking on the fear created by the real extortionists. Are you considering candidates' stances on intellectual property laws in your next election, wherever/whenever it is?

All the politician's I know of stances are hand behind back, palm up....

[zerospinboson]

Originally Posted by DawnFalcon

....So no different to the RIAA's extortion efforts then.

(why yes, I may be being mildly sarcastic)

May I one-up (eff.org) you?

There are several technologies and methods that can be used by network administrators and providers...these include [consumer] tools for managing copyright infringement from the home (based on tools used to protect consumers from viruses and malware).
In other words, the entertainment industry thinks consumers should voluntarily install software that constantly scans our computers and identifies (and perhaps deletes) files found to be "infringing." It's hard to believe the industry thinks savvy, security-conscious consumers would voluntarily do so. But those who remember the Sony BMG rootkit debacle know that the entertainment industry is all too willing to sacrifice consumers at the altar of copyright enforcement.

Customs authorities should be encouraged to do more to educate the traveling public and entrants into the United States about these issues. In particular, points of entry into the United States are underused venues for educating the public about the threat to our economy (and to public safety) posed by counterfeit and pirate products. Customs forms should be amended to require the disclosure of pirate or counterfeit items being brought into the United States.
The planned release of a blockbuster motion picture should be acknowledged as an event that attracts the focused efforts of copyright thieves, who will seek to obtain and distribute pre-release versions and/or to undermine legitimate release by unauthorized distribution through other channels. Enforcement agencies (notably within DOJ and DHS) should plan a similarly focused preventive and responsive strategy. An interagency task force should work with industry to coordinate and make advance plans to try to interdict these most damaging forms of copyright theft, and to react swiftly with enforcement actions where necessary.

[DawnFalcon]

The Sony rootkit debacle was a bunch of people not communicating with each other. A screwup, not malicious on any individual's part. This was traced out very soon after...

(It dosn't excuse them, but it's not a good example...stick to their legal idioticy)

[zerospinboson]

Originally Posted by DawnFalcon

The Sony rootkit debacle was a bunch of people not communicating with each other. A screwup, not malicious on any individual's part. This was traced out very soon after...

(It dosn't excuse them, but it's not a good example...stick to their legal idioticy)

I hate to belabor the point, but these are current policy/legislation recommendations made by the **AA, rather than a summary of stuff they have done/considered in the past.

[Worldwalker]

Originally Posted by DawnFalcon

The Sony rootkit debacle was a bunch of people not communicating with each other. A screwup, not malicious on any individual's part. This was traced out very soon after...

(It dosn't excuse them, but it's not a good example...stick to their legal idioticy)

There is no "screwup" or "not malicious" defense to the recording industry's extortion. Why should we give them any slack?

[DawnFalcon]

Because sticking to the stuff which is provably malicious rather than simply badly mistaken is a stronger argument against them.

[Shaggy]

Originally Posted by DawnFalcon

....So no different to the RIAA's extortion efforts then.

Wouldn't surprise me if it was the RIAA running this trojan.