Warez
Warez is a computer slang term meaning copyrighted material (usually software) traded in violation of its copyright license. The term generally refers to releases by organized groups, as opposed to file sharing between friends.
"Warez" is essentially a leet speak derivative short for the word "software" in the plural form. Initially this term was used by members of various computer underground circles but has since become commonplace amongst more mainstream Internet users. "Warez" is most common as a noun ("He downloaded 10 gigs of warez yesterday"), but can also be used as a verb ("The new Photoshop was warezed as soon as it was released"). People engaging in warez production and distribution are often called pirates, figuratively referring to the pirates of ocean commerce, though the use of this term is controversial: see Copyright infringement of software for details. They are also sometimes pejoratively called warez d00dz (this is leet speak). The collection of warez groups is referred to globally as the warez scene, or more ambiguously, the scene.
Warez is a large-scale and international phenomenon. Well-organized pirate groups, often based in China and Russia, illegally produce millions of copies of copyrighted software, which if sold at retail would be worth several billions of dollars annually. Pirates exploit the international nature of the Internet to avoid law enforcement from specific countries. For example, in Russia, the copying of software was once explicitly permitted by law when such software was not in the Russian language; this is no longer true, but prosecutions for copyright infringement are still very rare. While most copies of pirated software are manufactured in Asian factories, their distribution more often than not begin in Western nations such as the US and the European countries, where the largest international software companies are located.
Software cracking groups (not to be confused with the mostly Asian-based illegal CD manufacturers and the street vendors that sell warez), who are often highly efficient and highly tech savvy, delegate tasks among their members. These members are mostly located in first-world countries where high-speed Internet connections and powerful computers are readily available. For example, suppose a popular new piece of commercial software is released in the United States. A cracking group might first use one of its contacts in America to obtain a pre-release copy, then send it to a skilled programmer in Australia to remove copy prevention (see software cracking), who will then send it to a distributor in the Netherlands for release as warez. As a result, distribution of illegally copied programs on the same day as the commercial release ('0-day warez'), or even before ('negative-day warez'), is common. Beginning in the late 1990s, feature films have been frequently released by warez groups prior to their official release, a notable example of which was The Matrix.
Distribution of warez is usually handled between groups using topsites. The groups also have private sites for internal purposes, such as archiving their own releases and transferring the unmodified material between their members. Through the users of these sites the warez is delivered to people outside groups where it starts spreading through peer-to-peer networks, like KaZaA or eMule and becomes available to the public.
Unlike the pirated CD manufacturers and street vendors, cracking groups obtain no monetary profit from their actions. The motivation of these groups varies. Warez groups are competitive amongst each other, and a fast warez release is viewed as a social accomplishment. The morality of copyright infringement is also much more disputed than that of conventional property theft, and members of warez groups often view their actions as socially positive. Justifications include the alleged impossibility of copyright enforcement and the perceived injustice of not sharing information with those who could not afford to obtain it otherwise. They also claim that warez may actually increase the value of software through the network effect.
The production and/or distribution of warez is illegal in many jurisdictions. See Copyright infringement of software for legal details.
Sometimes, in addition to actual illegally copied data, warez dealers distribute Free software and documentation, copyrighted works whose copyright license specifies that the work may be legally redistributed. The free software community generally doesn't have any relation to the warez scene.
Warez groups
Some warez groups have included:
- Pirates With Attitude — PWA made the news by releasing Microsoft Windows 98 4 weeks before it hit store shelves. This incident is arguably one of the first "negative day" releases of a major software application.
- Motiv-8 — one of the first "courier" groups.
- Bentley Sidwell Productions — [1] (http://www.defacto2.net/apollo-x/wrzhst.htm)
- DoD - Drink Or Die — subject to raid in December 2001.
- DEViANCE
- Fairlight or FLT — subject to raid in April 2004.
- INC [2] (http://www.textfiles.com/piracy/INC/courier.txt)
- Phrozen Crew
- United Cracking Force
- Radium — Intentionally disbanded in 2001 to avoid the BSA who had them listed as their #1 target; attempts have been made to restart it. Known primarily for high dollar audio editing software such as Cubase VXT and Digidesign Pro-Tools.
- Razor 1911
- TGW
- TRSI — Tristar and Red Sector, Inc.
- USA
- OPG Crew [3] (http://www.opgamez.net/)
- Centropy
See also
External links
- Piracy Textfiles (http://www.textfiles.com/piracy/) A historical collection of documents released by warez-related individuals.
- How to Become an Elite Warez Trader (http://www.etext.org/Zines/ASCII/LowSelfEsteem/LSE-11.TXT) A humorous take on the mid 1990s scene.
- 2600 A Guide to Piracy (http://wheresthebeef.co.uk/2600_Guide_to_Internet_Piracy-TYDJ/) Article on the warez scene
References
- warez, The Jargon File (http://www.catb.org/~esr/jargon/html/W/warez.html)
- warez d00dz, The Jargon File (http://www.catb.org/~esr/jargon/html/W/warez-d00dz.html)
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