Scammers and dishonest P2P individuals use fake torrent file downloads to phish for your identity, trick you out of your money, or vandalize your computers through malware infections.
Fortunately, you can prevent this from happening to you. There are some obvious signs that a torrent file you're looking at is fake, or should at very least be dealt with carefully.
A file with the TORRENT file extension is a BitTorrent Data file that contains information about how files should be accessed through the BitTorrent P2P network. A file with the TORRENT file extension is a BitTorrent Data file that contains information about how files should be accessed through the BitTorrent P2P network. Much like a URL, TORRENT files simply point to another area on the internet where the file is at and use that location to retrieve the data. Torrent files are essentially links to online information that allows you to download a pertinent file or group of files, so you'll need a program such as. Depending on the torrent's file type, the file itself may not be compatible with your Android. A torrent file is distributed without the content, perhaps it contains only the valuable information about the file that contains your data like name of the files, size of the file, type of folder your file is stored in, and cryptographic hash values in order to verify the integrity of the file. A file with the TORRENT file extension is a BitTorrent Data file that contains information about how files should be accessed through the BitTorrent P2P network.
A TORRENT can be used to transfer any file type. Commonly, internet access is disproportional and supports greater download speeds than upload speeds, limiting the bandwidth of each download, and sometimes enforcing bandwidth caps as well as periods where systems are inaccessible. Torrent: A torrent is basically a file extension (.torrent) for the torrent file which contains all the information like tracker & location of the downloading file. The reason of speed of downloading any torrent file depends on many factors like – Seeders, Leechers, Peers etc.
Below are 10 tips to help you spot a fake torrent movie or music file. Also, be sure to check out our continually updated list of top torrent sites!
Beware Seeds but No or Few Comments
Abusive uploaders will often falsify the number of seeds and peers that are available. Using software tools like BTSeedInflator, these abusers will make their torrents look like 10,000 or more users are sharing it.
If you see these kinds of massive seed/peer numbers, but there are no user comments on the file, you would be wise to avoid that file!
Any true torrent that has more than a few thousand seeds should also have a fair number of positive user comments. If not, you're probably looking at a fake or bad torrent.
Check for Verified Status on the Torrent
Some torrent sites actually employ a committee of core users to confirm and 'verify' torrents.
While these verified files are small in number, they are more likely valid torrent files that can be trusted. Typically, 'verified' torrent files should be safe to download.
Confirm the Movie Release Date with a Third Party
For brand new movie torrents, take a minute to visit IMDB and verify the release date.
If the torrent has been released before the actual movie date, then don't trust it.
Sure, there's a possibility that it could be the real thing, but much more often it's a fake torrent file, so beware.
You Can Usually Trust AVI and MKV Files (but Avoid WMA and WMV Files)
For the most part, true movie files are in either the AVI or MKV format.
The majority of torrent files in WMA and WMV format are fake. While there are some that are authentic, files that end in the .wma and .wmv extensions usually will link to other sites where you're coerced to get paid codecs or malware downloads.
It's better to avoid those types of files completely.
Be Careful With RAR, TAR, & ACE Files
Yes, there are legit uploaders who use RAR archives to share files, but for movies and music, the majority of RAR and other archived files are fake.
Torrent site abusers use the RAR format to conceal Trojan style malware and codec scam files. The video or software you're downloading is already compressed, so there's no need to compress it further.
If you see an attractive torrent movie file or software download that's in the RAR, TAR, or ACE format, be very careful and examine its listed file contents before you download or unpacking the files.
If there is no list of the contents, do not trust the file. If the file list is disclosed, but it includes an EXE or other text-based instructions (more on those below), then move on.
Always Read the Comments
Some torrent sites like PirateBay will capture user comments on individual files. This works like feedback on eBay where comments from other eBay users can give you a sense of how legitimate the file is.
If you see no comments on a file, be suspicious. If you see any negative comments on the file, then move on and find a better torrent.
Beware of Password Instructions, Special Instructions, or EXE Files
If you see a file in the movie/music torrent that says 'password', 'special instructions', 'codec instructions', 'unrar instructions, 'important read me first', 'download instructions here', then the risk that this torrent is a scam or fake is very high.
The person spreading this file is likely looking to redirect you to a shady website to download a dubious movie player as a precondition to opening the movie file.
Additionally, if there is an EXE or other executable file included, then most certainly avoid that torrent download. Executable files for movies and music should be a giant red flag!
EXE files and any passwords or special download instructions are likely a sign that you should find a better torrent download elsewhere.
Avoid Using the Following Software
Some torrent software clients have earned a bad reputation for seeding malware, fraudulent codec downloaders, keyloggers, and Trojans.
Our readers have repeatedly advised us to warn against using BitLord, BitThief, Get-Torrent, TorrentQ, Torrent101, and Bitroll.
Let us know if you disagree or have others for the list!
Beware Trackers that Can't Be Found on Google
Open the published torrent details, and copy-paste the tracker names into Google. If a tracker is legitimate, you'll see a number of Google hits where many torrent sites point to the copy-pasted tracker.
If the tracker is fake or malicious, you will find many unrelated hits on Google, often with the words 'fake' as P2P users post warnings on various sites and forums about that fake tracker.
Only Use These Media Players
These are plenty of trusted, free movie and music players for Windows, Mac, Linux, and your smartphone.
A few include WinAmp, Windows Media Player (WMP), VLC Media Player, GMPLayer, and KMPlayer... among others.
Do a quick Google search for any media player you're not familiar with. With so many reputable options, don't risk downloading and installing something you've never heard of. It might end up being nothing but malware!
Torrent files are small files that contain information on how to download a larger file using BitTorrent protocol. The protocol, unlike HTTP/HTTPS, needs a torrent client for downloading the client. We’ll take a quick look at how BitTorrent works and if files downloaded using them are legal and safe.
What are Torrent files and BitTorrent protocol
BitTorrent is a protocol that helps you in downloading large files without having to be troubled by bandwidth. The structure of the protocol also provides for resume support. The resume support means you can pause downloading at a point and resume downloading from the point where it was paused. If you stop downloading in the middle, you may have to download from the beginning or from the point where you stopped, depending on the BitTorrent client you are using.
BitTorrent employs more than one server (in this case, called peers, as they are interlinked directly, without the need for a server to control them: see image above) for downloading files to your computer. And as long as you are downloading, you are also part of a BitTorrent network. While downloading the file, you are also uploading it to some other client that is seeking the same file for download. Even after your download is complete, if you keep the torrent client open and do not remove the torrent from your torrent client, it continues uploading (seeding) the download so that others can download it from your computer (without knowing its IP address and location).
Torrent Files Download Sites
The very base of the BitTorrent protocol is to share computers for providing large downloads using give and take formula. There are already a swarm of computers (peers) that contain either the download file in full or in parts. When you download a torrent file, you download information about the whereabouts of the file, the main link, the encryption method used (if any) and similar information. Once your download starts, you can see your client downloading it in parts from different computers that can be home computers too. Like if someone is downloading the same file, he or she is also uploading (seeding) the file to another computer from where you can download the file at a faster pace. The ideal ratio, according to BitTorrent protocol creator, should be 1:1. That means, if you download a file using others’ computers, you should be able to give it back to the community by way of letting your Bit Torrent client upload the file for a while. Most BitTorrent clients show you how much of the file you have uploaded infield that may be marked either “upload” or “seed”.
The main advantage of this system is that people are active participants, and hence the network grows which, in turn, results in lesser bandwidth being used. Imagine if a single server was used and too many people tried to access it, no one would get it as the server would crash.
How To Open Torrent Files
Read:What are Peer to Peer Networks (P2P).
Are BitTorrents Legal or Illegal
The answer to this question is both Yes and No. It depends on upon what you are downloading. While some sites offer only legitimate content whose copyright they hold or things that are in public domain, many offer pirated movies, music, songs, and books, etc. You should check with the law of your land to see what you are downloading is legal. The responsibility of downloading illegal files rests completely with you as the people who run websites hosting BitTorrents can easily get away in the maze of computers by claiming innocence.
Are BitTorrents Safe or Unsafe
Most of the Bit Torrents are safe as the well-known Torrent sites check it out before hosting them for downloads. However, not all sites are safe. Some may willingly distribute malware while some others may not be aware (they may not have checked the parts of file they are hosting) as malicious. Besides, if a BitTorrent client is uploading from an infected computer, the chances are that your downloads may be infected.
I suggest you always deep-scan scan both the .torrent files and the final download with an antivirus to see if they are safe for use.
How to download Torrent files
The process to download torrent files is easy. All you have to do is to run a search for Torrent files. You may go to advanced search and ask the search engine to look for files with .torrent extensions. This brings you to the search engine results page where you can download a .torrent file containing more information about how to go and get the original download. If you have a Torrent client installed already, all you have to do is to double-click on the .torrent file to open the torrent client which then downloads the entire file, all the while, uploading it as well.
I used simple language, avoiding technical jargon, to make it easier for everyone to understand this subject. The complete technical terms, in case you are interested, are available on Wikipedia as BitTorrent Technical Glossary.
Look forward to your comments!
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