Torrents

[Superluigi6]

n/a

 

[Berton]

These pages found by Google Search will provide information but basically using BitTorrent allows downloading the same file or parts of it from several sources at the same time, usually handy for large files and slower connections:
https://www.google.com/search?noj=1...0....0...1c.1.53.hp..1.8.1034.0.-H4XZy-DAj0f1

 

[LMiller7]

Torrents themselves are legal. But unfortunately much of what is offered on torrents is not. And there are also some gray areas. My experience with torrents is just about nill.

 

[MourningStar]

'to torrent or not to torrent' ... it's just another file transfer process. google/wiki it yourself, all you need to know is there.

 

[Gator]

Here is the rule of thumb, if its free to the public, its legal to download as a torrent. If its a program, movies, music, ebooks etc etc... and it is available to the public to buy either in a store or online, its illegal to download. Now there is always the question, will you get caught? Most likely not depending on your downloading tendencies. As far as downloading a torrent to watch a live game, I wouldn't do that at all. You can go to places like first row sports and watch streams. Never download a torrent that promises a live stream, just my opinion.

Simply put, either stay away from most torrents or be extremely careful when downloading.

When I download a torrent I look at the following:
1. Is the uploader legit? Click their name and look at their rep on the torrent site you are on. Check for other uploads as well. If he has a ton of uploads with a ton of downloads, typically this person is ok to download from. If its someone with no rep, not many downloads, no comments etc etc... run, fast.

2. Are there a lot of comments and ratings on that torrent? As another rule, I never download something without at least 3-4 comments saying this torrent is good, no virus etc etc.

3. After downloading a torrent, DO NOT OPEN IT! Go to the file location and scan it with all virus/malware/spyware products software you have. If any of them scream at you, deleted it and all other data/folders etc associated with that file.

My go to torrent software is uTorrent. I typically only download from places like piratebay and kickass torrents.

To be sure, its not ok to download torrents that usually cost you money in any other circumstances. Be careful, because some torrents are also setup as traps (from companies who sell the software/movies/music etc).

Also, I wanted to add this and hopefully I don't sound like an A-hole, but its just an observation. We aren't here to tell people to go google it themselves or send them a link of what they can look at to research their problem themselves. We are here because its most likely that the OP has already tried to find an answer to their question and they couldn't or they aren't savvy enough to find and fix things alone. Just my two cents.

 

[Superluigi6]

n/a

 

[Gator]

Here is the rule of thumb, if its free to the public, its legal to download as a torrent. If its a program, movies, music, ebooks etc etc... and it is available to the public to buy either in a store or online, its illegal to download. Now there is always the question, will you get caught? Most likely not depending on your downloading tendencies. As far as downloading a torrent to watch a live game, I wouldn't do that at all. You can go to places like first row sports and watch streams. Never download a torrent that promises a live stream, just my opinion.

Simply put, either stay away from most torrents or be extremely careful when downloading.

When I download a torrent I look at the following:
1. Is the uploader legit? Click their name and look at their rep on the torrent site you are on. Check for other uploads as well. If he has a ton of uploads with a ton of downloads, typically this person is ok to download from. If its someone with no rep, not many downloads, no comments etc etc... run, fast.

2. Are there a lot of comments and ratings on that torrent? As another rule, I never download something without at least 3-4 comments saying this torrent is good, no virus etc etc.

3. After downloading a torrent, DO NOT OPEN IT! Go to the file location and scan it with all virus/malware/spyware products software you have. If any of them scream at you, deleted it and all other data/folders etc associated with that file.

My go to torrent software is uTorrent. I typically only download from places like piratebay and kickass torrents.

To be sure, its not ok to download torrents that usually cost you money in any other circumstances. Be careful, because some torrents are also setup as traps (from companies who sell the software/movies/music etc).

Also, I wanted to add this and hopefully I don't sound like an A-hole, but its just an observation. We aren't here to tell people to go google it themselves or send them a link of what they can look at to research their problem themselves. We are here because its most likely that the OP has already tried to find an answer to their question and they couldn't or they aren't savvy enough to find and fix things alone. Just my two cents.

I have actually tried looking it up on Google and DuckDuckGo (fav search engine!), but nothing really helped me.

So, if you are telling me to not download stuff like live streams for events, copyrighted tv shows, etc for free from an external website, then what else can you use it for? It's sounding like watching full tv show episodes and live streams for games or whatever, is completely illegal, correct?

There are plenty of things to download. Open source software which may be distributed free via torrents is just one example. A great example would be downloading Linux distro torrents which are generally free. You can also download full software but do it responsibly and only use the trial instead of finding a torrent with cracked software (illegal). Or download Office and use a product key you own to activate it.

I'm not saying its impossible to download these shows or streams.. I'm saying downloading pirated software and movies is risky but its rare for normal people who download a torrent or two every once in a while to actually get caught or in trouble. You can use them at your own risk its just good to know the consequences first.

 

[3D Jed]

There are a few bands/musicians who distribute their stuff for free on bittorrent, ditto a handful of indie movie makers and some Linux distros - the other 99.9% of torrents is copyright material. When you use bittorrent, your IP address is exposed for anyone to see. There are many outfits that make a nice living harvesting IPs of illegal downloaders and selling the lists to Hollywood, music biz etc. Depending on your locale, this could result in writs for damages, loss of internet etc. A few people in the US have been hit for millions of $$.

It's like any crime - you weigh the risks and make your choices.

 

[Layback Bear]

One should remember if you are using a torrent of any kind; it's one of the best ways of getting infected. One has no idea what is coming from where. People are seeding from all over the world.

My opinion is simple.
If one needs a torrent to download something then you don't want it. Find a proper site and download from there.

 

[logicearth]

One should remember if you are using a torrent of any kind; it's one of the best ways of getting infected. One has no idea what is coming from where. People are seeding from all over the world.

My opinion is simple.
If one needs a torrent to download something then you don't want it. Find a proper site and download from there.

The only way for a torrent to be infected with malware is if the original file is infected to start with. A random individual seeding the file among hundreds cannot infect the file. Torrents are constantly using checksums matching against the original file. This is no different then "finding a proper site and download from there" as you put it. The same risk is applicable to both. Download from trusted sources.

But I'll state it again, Torrents are not one of the best ways of getting infected. The risk of downloading from a torrent, of from a web site is the same. It makes no difference.

 

[Computer0304]

Please correct me if the following is wrong as I am not an expert on this, it is just an assumption,
I think that torrenting may use up a noticeable amount of bandwith if you have downloaded a popular torrent since it may get a seed from you PC sometimes. If you leave your PC on 24/7, it may use up a lot of bandwidth. This usually only affects those on a metered connection, but it can also slow down your internet depending on how fast it is.

 

[Layback Bear]

One should remember if you are using a torrent of any kind; it's one of the best ways of getting infected. One has no idea what is coming from where. People are seeding from all over the world.

My opinion is simple.
If one needs a torrent to download something then you don't want it. Find a proper site and download from there.

The only way for a torrent to be infected with malware is if the original file is infected to start with. A random individual seeding the file among hundreds cannot infect the file. Torrents are constantly using checksums matching against the original file. This is no different then "finding a proper site and download from there" as you put it. The same risk is applicable to both. Download from trusted sources.

But I'll state it again, Torrents are not one of the best ways of getting infected. The risk of downloading from a torrent, of from a web site is the same. It makes no difference.

Yes and no.
Because most of us know what many people download using a torrent and it's not their grandma's cook books.
The simple fact of using a torrent is really not the problem. The problem comes in on what the download is.
The bad guys also know what many use torrents for and that is where the problem arises.

Getting a movie from proper site and paying for it. Then using a torrent if offered to download it is not the problem. Getting said movie from where ever and not paying for it is the problem.
The bad guys know that the movie is being bootlegged.
Considering the movie industry looses billions of dollars with people bootlegging movies I would think that many people do this with torrents along with bootlegging programs and operating systems. In my opinion those bootlegged items can and do come with infections many times.

Torrents are like a hammer. If used properly they both can be useful. If used wrong they both can cause pain. Most people use a hammer correctly but I don't think most people use a torrent correctly.

 

[logicearth]

So in other words, Torrent is not the problem. People are. Same can be said for anything you download off the internet. Irregardless of how you download it.

 

[ThrashZone]

The only torrent I've ever used is MajorGeeks I believe there's one other but can't think of it at the moment :/

 

[Gator]

Please correct me if the following is wrong as I am not an expert on this, it is just an assumption,
I think that torrenting may use up a noticeable amount of bandwith if you have downloaded a popular torrent since it may get a seed from you PC sometimes. If you leave your PC on 24/7, it may use up a lot of bandwidth. This usually only affects those on a metered connection, but it can also slow down your internet depending on how fast it is.

Its not a huge hit on your bandwidth if there is one at all. I have not done enough research about it to know but I doubt its a lot. The solution is, never seed anything. Whenever your torrent is done, go in there and remove it so you stop it from seeding for other users.

 

[matts6887]

IMO; i would stay away from torrents; simply for the reason being they can contain viruses, malware, and the like that can really wreck havoc on your system if you arent careful about what you are downloading; and the thing is its not always easy to tell what links may contain viruses, etc. unless you have anti virus that ends up detecting something before you download it.

 

[MourningStar]

to repeat, torrenting is simply another file transfer process. It is no more or less problematic than e-mail, the rapidshare/file factory/mega's or any of those 'free-download-trial/try-before-u-buy' sites. If there is infection, it will be in the file itself.

 

[Alejandro85]

i would stay away from torrents; simply for the reason being they can contain viruses, malware, and the like

Under that condition, you should really stay away from internet altogether. Torrents themselves are never the cause of that, what do you choose to download is the real problem.

 

[Computer0304]

Please correct me if the following is wrong as I am not an expert on this, it is just an assumption,
I think that torrenting may use up a noticeable amount of bandwith if you have downloaded a popular torrent since it may get a seed from you PC sometimes. If you leave your PC on 24/7, it may use up a lot of bandwidth. This usually only affects those on a metered connection, but it can also slow down your internet depending on how fast it is.

Its not a huge hit on your bandwidth if there is one at all. I have not done enough research about it to know but I doubt its a lot. The solution is, never seed anything. Whenever your torrent is done, go in there and remove it so you stop it from seeding for other users.

How much seeds does a torrent download usually use anyway?