A long time ago, p2p file sharing was fairly safe. That's no longer true.
Malware writers are increasingly and agressively exploiting them to spread their wares. There's a significant increase in the number of people infected via the use of P2P programs. Running any type of p2p application will make one far more prone to infection by malware. The nature of P2P filesharing is so that even if one is using a "clean" program, many of the files downloaded from non-documented sources have the potential of being infected.
More than half of all files available for download from peer-to-peer networks have been deliberately infected with some form of malware. Most P2P file sharing programs are configured to automatically launch at startup and are also configured to allow other p2p users on the same network open access to a shared directory on the computer. File sharing is based on this unfettered acces to all computers across the p2p network. It's this practice that can make systems vulnerable not only to data and identity theft but also to becoming instrumental in the spread of malware.
Some examples how these programs become toxic:
Bad and 'good' p2p programs links:
Clean and Infected p2p Programs
Clean and infected File Sharing Programs - Malware Removal topic
Spybot on P2P Programs
P2P..Popular and Perilous.
Other related links:
FBI Cyberletter To Users of Peer-to-Peer Systems
Comparison of Unwanted Software Installed by P2P Programs
Student Ordered to Pay $675,000 for Illegal Downloads
Update: Seattle man arrested for p-to-p ID theft
Identity Thieves Lurk in P-to-P Networks
Risks of File-Sharing Technology
Woman Fined $222,000 for Music Sharing
Malware: Help prevent the Infection
IM And P2P Malware Threats Nearly Triple
Cyber-criminals Use P2P Tools for Identity Theft, Security Analyst Warns
How to Prevent the Online Invasion of Spyware and Adware
Malware writers are increasingly and agressively exploiting them to spread their wares. There's a significant increase in the number of people infected via the use of P2P programs. Running any type of p2p application will make one far more prone to infection by malware. The nature of P2P filesharing is so that even if one is using a "clean" program, many of the files downloaded from non-documented sources have the potential of being infected.
More than half of all files available for download from peer-to-peer networks have been deliberately infected with some form of malware. Most P2P file sharing programs are configured to automatically launch at startup and are also configured to allow other p2p users on the same network open access to a shared directory on the computer. File sharing is based on this unfettered acces to all computers across the p2p network. It's this practice that can make systems vulnerable not only to data and identity theft but also to becoming instrumental in the spread of malware.
Some examples how these programs become toxic:
- poisoning attacks on the network (e.g. providing files whose contents are different than the description)
- insertion of viruses to carried data (e.g. downloaded or carried files may be infected with viruses or other malware)
- malware in the peer-to-peer network software itself (e.g. distributed software may contain spyware/malware)
- identity attacks (e.g. tracking down the users of the network and harassing or legally attacking them)
- spamming (e.g. sending unsolicited information across the network)
Bad and 'good' p2p programs links:
Clean and Infected p2p Programs
Clean and infected File Sharing Programs - Malware Removal topic
Spybot on P2P Programs
P2P..Popular and Perilous.
Other related links:
FBI Cyberletter To Users of Peer-to-Peer Systems
Comparison of Unwanted Software Installed by P2P Programs
Student Ordered to Pay $675,000 for Illegal Downloads
Update: Seattle man arrested for p-to-p ID theft
Identity Thieves Lurk in P-to-P Networks
Risks of File-Sharing Technology
Woman Fined $222,000 for Music Sharing
Malware: Help prevent the Infection
IM And P2P Malware Threats Nearly Triple
Cyber-criminals Use P2P Tools for Identity Theft, Security Analyst Warns
How to Prevent the Online Invasion of Spyware and Adware