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How do "Shady" Sites Host?

by acoustix
8 replies
How do these certain sites like counterfeits, pirated , copyrighted movies, etc. get away with host their sites?

What hosting providers would allow this kind of site to be hosted?

If you are doing your own hosting, it seems it would cost a ton of money to set up your own servers for a high traffic site - and then, what ISP would allow serving a site like this through theservice??
#host #shady #sites
  • Profile picture of the author Warrior X
    They just host their sites in countries that aren't too picky when it comes to formalities like copyright laws.
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  • Profile picture of the author onSubie
    Many hosts do not check and censor the content of sites unless it violates a specific term in their agreement or until they get a formal complaint from someone with the authority to make one.

    If you put copyright content on your site (as many do) your host will not usually intervene unless they get a complaint from the copyright holder.

    Internet laws allow service providers like hosts and ISPs a certain amount of indemnity if they comply with legal guidelines. The idea is that it is too much of a burden for an ISP or host to keep track of every site/customer and their activity.

    In cases of really bad violations, I expect those sites are hosted by providers from countries with lax laws for the subject in question.

    The subjects you list - counterfeiting, pirate software and copyright movies - are governed by a wide variety of laws depending on the country.

    For example the U.S. has stricter copyright laws than Canada, while China has almost none. At least none the government seems interested in enforcing.
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  • Profile picture of the author acoustix
    I thought most countries that even sold hosting were pretty strict on copyright laws now. Does anyone know specific examples of well known sites and what countries they host in?
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    • Profile picture of the author DubDubDubDot
      Shady sites are generally operated by amateurs and thus remain small enough to fly under the radar for months or even years. Hosting is cheap enough so that if they do get shut down they can set back up elsewhere for ten bucks.

      If they get shut down a lot and are determined to stay online they may opt for what is known as bulletproof hosting. That means the host's owner ignores all complaints even if he is putting himself at risk. These kind of hosts cost more than legit hosts. They often operate under the guise of "free speech hosting."
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  • Profile picture of the author onSubie
    You can find the host of a site by searching here: whoishostingthis.com

    Website Hosting Search Tool, Reviews & More at WhoIsHostingThis.com
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  • Profile picture of the author Confined To Life
    Offshore hosting. Some countries have very lax policies in regards to hosting. I think Russia is one.
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    • Profile picture of the author onSubie
      Originally Posted by Confined To Life View Post

      Offshore hosting. Some countries have very lax policies in regards to hosting. I think Russia is one.
      Some torrent sites and file share sites host in Poland.
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  • Profile picture of the author Ben Gordon
    They do these shady deals and host this content in countries that usually have a government which doesn't enforce many internet laws or have other more important things to worry about (i.e. their economy, poverty and crimes). Why do you think many scams happen in Nigeria? It's super hard to sue them because their government doesn't enforce many laws against this and you would have a hard time chasing them down. The unfortunate reality is that many illegal internet practices are being purposely done in countries that don't enforce many of the necessary laws required to be able to take down these websites.
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