James Delahunty
21 Jun 2010 1:16
Swedish police have made three arrests in an Internet piracy case that targeted "scene" warez servers known as "Darkside". The action follows an investigation from anti-piracy outfit Antipiratbyrån. The servers carried huge amounts of data, making them the biggest case so far in Sweden, and possibly even in Europe.
According to Henrik Pontén of Antipiratbyrån, the three arrested maintained servers that housed 130 terabytes of Swedish and international films and other content. Searches were carried out by police in Stockholm and at two locations in Västerås. The servers were found at the locations.
"Dark Side has a huge capacity," Pontén said. "This is the biggest case we know of to date, certainly the biggest in Sweden, but possibly also in Europe." The investigation was handed over to police in February after Antipiratbyrån spent months gathering IP addresses and other usable information.
"Wednesday's police operation was yet another important step to stop organized piracy. This type of action has a direct and dramatic effect on the number of infringements," said Pontén in a statement.
"By extension, it means that the cultural workers get an opportunity to get paid for their work and we consumers have access to a continuing culture production."