[CLUE-Talk] Fw: Massive theft ring shut down

[Charles Oriez]

>
>Found this news:bsgdua$3nq$1 at news.spamcop.net in spamcop.social:
>
>-= BEGIN forwarded message =-
>
>Subject: Massive theft ring shut down
>From: "Frog Prince" <me at privacy.net>
>Newsgroups: spamcop.social
>
>FBI, INTERPOL, INDUSTRY GROUPS SHUT DOWN
>MASSIVE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY THEFT RING
>
>(Washington, Dec. 24)  A "massive" international gang
>of intellectual property thieves has been shut down by a
>closely coordinated effort of the FBI and Interpol, working
>with industry groups such as the RIAA, MPAA, BSA, and
>makers of branded and licensed goods, such as Disney,
>LVMH, Cartier, and Mattel.  The ring has been responsible
>for manufacturing "literally billions" of copies of
>trademarked, copyrighted, and patented goods for
>distribution worldwide for many years, said an FBI
>spokesman.  The gang has traditionally given away the
>pirated goods at the end of each year, causing vendors of
>legitimate goods hundreds of billions of dollars in lost
>sales.
>
>The gang started operations many years ago making generic
>wooden toys, but has expanded its operations into making
>perfect copies of software, game consoles, licensed toys,
>name-brand jewelry and clothing, and other items.  Operating
>from a variety of isolated factories known as "workshops"
>located in Finland, Canada, and other locations North of
>the Arctic Circle to evade detection, the ring operated a
>global distribution network that allowed deliveries
>everywhere in the world during a single 24-hour period.
>Investigators believe this network may have involved
>animal cruelty, based on the discovery of a reindeer in
>the group's stable in northern Finland with a nose so
>badly injured it almost glowed bright red.
>
>The ringleader, according to Interpol, is a mysterious
>figure going by the handle "SantaClaus."  His real name is
>said to be Kristoffer Kringl, and he is apparently a Turkish
>refugee of indeterminate age who claims to be a former
>religious cult leader.  His co-conspirators refer to
>themselves only as "the Elves," and refuse to provide any
>names.
>
>A spokeswoman for the RIAA applauded the capture of the
>ring, which ended the longest-standing and largest-volume
>CD piracy operation in history.  "This was bigger than
>Napster, Kazaa, and Gnutella combined," she said.  "And it
>is now over, and music lovers around the world will not
>have to tolerate this abuse of artists' rights any longer."
>
>Jack Valenti announced that the MPAA supplied officials with
>details about the group's distribution of pirated DVDs and
>videotapes, which had long been suspected.  "SantaClaus
>is no longer a threat," he said.  Bill Gates noted that
>"this so-called SantaClaus managed to duplicate even the
>most sophisticated software copy protection mechanisms,
>including product authentication keys that worked perfectly,
>even though they were not created by Microsoft."
>
>An FBI spokesman indicated that an investigation was
>underway into whether the ring's activities were facilitated
>by the Internet.  "We think that the many mentions of
>entering via chimneys are actually referring to 'backdoor'
>entry ports in software and hardware the group made," he
>said.
>
>Interpol has requested assistance from its 156 member
>nations to destroy all of the billions of infringing goods
>as soon as possible.
>
>
>
>-= END forwarded message =-
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>
>
>--
>Carpe Daemon -- Seize the background process!

Charles Oriez     coriez at oriez.org
39  34' 34.4"N / 105 00' 06.3"W
**
Si Hoc Legere Scis Nimium Eruditionis Habes