Windows 10 has been banned by several torrent trackers in a strange twist to the P2P file sharing story. This was supposedly done due to the fear that Microsoft’s newest operating scanning the contents of hard drives and deleting all torrents it discovers. Not that Windows 10 is actually capable of doing anything of the sort.
The fear seems to come from a very paranoid interpretation of one particular section of the Windows 10 End User Agreement. We’ve already covered the fact that Microsoft appears to reserve the right to monitor files on Windows 10 computers and potentially disable pirated software. We have also pointed out that this is limited to first party software, and does not go anywhere near third party files.
Of course, this has caused private trackers to ban connections originating from Windows 10 computers. Staffers at iTS explain that this is due to the amount of data it shares with other companies. Mainly with the amount of information that is sent to MarkMonitor, a brand protection company associated with the US Copyright Alert system. These trackers are worried that MarkMonitor will have access to the contents of hard disks, and will subsequently share it with anti-piracy groups.
This fear is largely unfounded as Microsoft uses MarkMonitor to protect its own brand. The company helps to keep scammers from abusing the Microsoft name; although it could conceivably be used against people who pirate Microsoft Office or Microsoft made games (which would fall under the purview of the End User Agreement).
On the other hand, this banning will probably hit the number of pirates out there; which means that Torrent trackers have managed to scare themselves into reducing piracy.
[Source: Torrentfreak]
