Torrents: Legal or Illegal?

I'm sure you've probably heard the term torrent. You may have even used them. But, what really are torrents and how do they work? How can you download all those files at blazing fast speeds? Why aren't they illegal? What are the advantages to using torrents vs. file storage websites. What programs do I need to use torrents? Most people use torrents for sharing music, photos, and documents, but some abuse them. All these questions about torrents and more will be answered in this article. Read More...

Torrents are files that you open in you torrent program (uTorrent, BitTorrent, etc.) that connect you to a network of file-sharing users. The torrent file is simply a way of accessing the network and enables you to share the files. To open a torrent you will need a torrent program, such as uTorrent or BitTorrent. With these programs you connect to a P2P (Peer-to-Peer) file sharing communications port. Torrents can be used to distribute anything. From photos, to sideshows, to open source programs, to even pirated programs. You do not download a torrent's files from a website, you download them from other people who have the file. This is called seeding. Seeding is when a user has the complete torrent downloaded and is sharing it with others by means of the P2P network. These users are called seeders. There is another group of users called leechers. These are the people who are downloading the files from the seeders. The more seeders and the less leechers a torrent has, the quicker download speeds. Bits and pieces of the files are shared between users until all the users have the files. P2P networks have advanced algorithms that determine your download speed. Depending on how many files you share, you will get faster speeds. This is just a general principle though because most algorithms are more advanced then that.

Torrent files are generally considered to be safe, thought I would air on the side of caution with some. The acutual torrent file will probably be safe. It is the files you download that might not be. Since the torrent's creator can add any files he/she wants, he/she could simply add a virus or spyware to the torrent. This is why it is best to use a torrent program that scans the files for viruses. It's also advisable to run your own virus scan on the files before running any of them, just in case there actually is a virus on one of the files. If you don't have virus protection, you can try AVG Free. Viruses usually are attached to pirated software torrents since usually software runs by means of an executable file. It is best if you only download torrents from trusted sources so you don't have to worry about viruses.

This next question is probably the reason why you read this article. Are torrents legal? The answer to this question is both yes and no. Some torrents contain files that are legal, but some contain some that aren't. You can download a photo show with torrents legally, but if you try to download that new Justin Timbelake album, that is illegal. It all depends on one thing: copyright. If a file is copyrighted, then files can not be legally distributed through a P2P network (or any other for that matter) without the author's writing consent. You will find most of the torrents on sites like The Pirate Bay and torrents.to are illegal copyrighted material. There are still, though, some downloads that are legal (These ones that contain not copyrighted material). If you aren't sure if something is copyrighted you can always check the author's website for copyright information.

I personally would suggest using torrents for legal methods. Every day there are stories about people who got caught with thousands of dollars of software that they didn't buy. Trust me, they paid (I've seen fines up to 500,000 dollars). It's just not worth it to obtain the software illegally. You can and probably will get caught eventually. On the other hand, if you use torrents legally that is fine and I encourage this type of use. Torrents are totally illegal in many Countries (including Canada). If we abuse the use of torrents, they may become completely illegal in the US too. If you not sure if what your downloading is legal, it's best if you just don't. Instead of looking for torrents of pirated software such as Photoshop (Adobe is very strict about torrents; They have fined people 10,000 dollars for distributing/downloading their software illegally), why not use GIMP. It is a free open source Photoshop look-a-like. You can also try Open Office instead of Microsoft Office. I've heard tons of people say it is way better than Ms Office, and who can beat the price, free!