The Pirate Bay has been overrun by guards. It’s no longer a safe haven for file sharing fanatics. The ships’ captains have put up a good fight, but it’s becoming more and more difficult to access the most famous torrent site in the world.
- Office 2010 Torrent Pirate Bay
- Office 2007 Torrent Pirate Bay
- Microsoft Office 2013 Torrent Pirate Bay
Whether you side with the anti-piracy brigade or the “free movies for everyone” brigade is moot. Yes, The Pirate Bay does facilitate illegal file sharing (although not as conventiently as, say, Popcorn Time), but it’s also a phenomenal way to obtain legitimate copyright-free content. If you can’t get on the site, you can’t participate in the legal side of P2P downloading.
Except, you can. There are lots of alternatives out there. You just need to know where to look. Here are the top six torrent sites other than The Pirate Bay (and its other mirrors).
A Warning Before You Seek Torrents
MakeUseOf does not condone using torrents to illegally obtain content. Using the following sites for illegal purposes is done entirely at your own risk. MakeUseOf takes no responsibility for any legal problems you encounter.
In almost every country in the world, it is illegal to download torrents of copyright protected movies, games, TV shows, and music if you do not already legitimately own the content. Doing so is intellectual property theft.
For example, if you’ve purchased the latest Lady Gaga album, current copyright law entitles you to download the album using torrents. If you haven’t bought it, it’s illegal to download it.
Using torrents for illegal downloads can put you at risk of losing your internet connectionHow to Handle a Copyright Infringement Notice From Your ISPHow to Handle a Copyright Infringement Notice From Your ISPReceived a copyright infringement notice from your ISP but don't know why? Here's what you need to do next.Read More, receiving a fine, or getting a custodial sentence.
1. KickassTorrents
Like The Pirate Bay, KickassTorrents has been through its fair share of legal trials and tribulations. After going live back in 2008, it steadily grew in popularity. By mid-2014, it had overtaken The Pirate Bay to become the most popular torrent site in the world.
But while its popularity was steadily growing among users, behind the scenes, its notoriety was also growing with law enforcement authorities. It fought endless court battles before the United States government finally seized the domain in July 2016.
However, like a phoenix rising from the ashes, the site has come back to life. In December 2016, it was relaunched by members of the original team with a similar interface and a refreshed list of torrents.
2. TorLock
TorLock claims to be the only torrent site on the web which is 100 percent dedicated to verified torrents. In fact, the developers are so dedicated that they’ll pay you $1 for every fake torrent you find (and report).
The site is also adamant it wants a “professional” relationship with copyright holders. It processes any DMCA takedown noticesWhat Is the Digital Media Copyright Act?What Is the Digital Media Copyright Act?Read More within three days and removes the torrent links from its database.
Despite its grandiose promises, it’s quite apparent from looking at the homepage that illegal content is still rife. However, if the site can continue to work with copyright holders, it could become one of the leading sources for legitimate and legal P2P downloads.
3. iDope
iDope is a lesser-known name in the torrent world, but it makes the cut on this list for one primary reason: it offers a great Android app.
It means you can access more than 12 million torrent files directly from your device. It’s a great way to find Creative Commons music or copyright-free movies if you’re away from home and stuck for something to do in your hotel. Best of all, the app is ad-free.
Because of the negative connotations associated with torrents, the app is not in the Google Play Store. You will need to download the APK file and install it manuallyHow to Download an APK from Google Play to Bypass RestrictionsHow to Download an APK from Google Play to Bypass RestrictionsNeed to get your hands on the installable APK file for an app from Google Play? We got you covered.Read More. Do note that the app only lets you search for torrent files. To download them, you will need another mobile app that can download torrents.
4. Torrentz2.eu
Long-term torrent users will be familiar with the name of Torrentz.eu. The once popular torrent site voluntarily shut down in August 2016 after a 13-year life. In both 2012 and 2015, it was the second most popular torrent site on the web.
Torrentz2.eu is trying to replace the fallen giant. The home page looks the same, the results pages look the same, and the selection of torrents is almost identical. The site hasn’t officially confirmed it, but one assumes some of the original Torrentz.eu staff must part of the project.
At the time of writing, Torrentz2.eu has more than 61 million torrents indexed. You will definitely be able to find plenty of legal content to enjoy.
5. isoHunt
isoHunt is another torrent site that you might have thought had come to an end.
While it’s true that the original isoHunt met its match in 2013 when the U.S. courts ordered owner Gary Fung to pay $110 million to various Hollywood Studios for violation of copyrighted movies and TV shows, it was quickly reborn under a new domain name. And it’s still going strong today.
Unlike some other sites on this list, the modern version of isoHunt has a fully functioning advanced search feature. You can filter for both family friendly content and verified torrents, as well as the usual selection of keywords and dates.
6. 1337x.to
1337x is probably the most aesthetically pleasing torrent site you’ll ever come across. It underwent a major redesign in late-2016.
Despite being a popular torrent site since 2007, Google permanently removed the site from its search results in 2015 following Feelgood Entertainment’s request. As such, it’s presumably lost a lot of users.
But don’t let the site’s own legal issues put you off. In terms of legitimate content, it’s still one of the best resources anywhere on the web. The site has easy-to-navigate subsections that make the discovery process as simple as possible.
Non-English Sites
You’ll have noticed the majority of the content on the six sites I have listed are in English. Sure, you can find some non-English files, but they are few and far between.
If English isn’t your primary language, don’t worry. Here are three non-English torrent sites:
- Mejor Torrent (Spanish): The user interface isn’t great, but with 25 million users it’s comfortably the most popular Spanish torrent site in the world.
- LostFilmTV (Russian): Despite the English-sounding name, LostFilmTV is the most popular torrent site for Russian content after the closure of Rutracker.
- Torrent9 (French): Torrent9 boasts more than two million French torrents. It’s popular in France, Belgium, and Canada.
Which Torrent Site Do You Use?
Between the six English-language sites and the three foreign-language sites, you should be able to find all the legal content you could possibly wish for.
Despite the ongoing war against torrent sites, there’s still no better way for finding copyright-free music, movies, and images. And if you find yourself having trouble using your Torrent site of choice, you may want to look into ways to bypass Torrent connection blocking.
Of course, because of the war, the world of torrent sites is a dynamic place. So, if you know about a great torrent site we missed, make sure you let us know in the comments below.
One last piece of advice: Torrent safely with a VPNThe Best VPN for Torrenting: ExpressVPN vs. CyberGhost vs. MullvadThe Best VPN for Torrenting: ExpressVPN vs. CyberGhost vs. MullvadWith hundreds of VPN providers out there, it can be difficult to find the right one to meet your needs. For torrenting, you'll want to stick to one of these.Read More.
Image Credit: Axel Alvarez via Shutterstock
Originally written by Will Mueller on August 16, 2009
Explore more about: BitTorrent, Download Management, .
Who told you that rutracker is closed? It is up and running - rutracker.org
KickassTorrents has become kind of subdued. Some of the torrents are expired. Some torrents have lost their peers (both sides).
TPB is working just fine.
How you came across the ranking perhaps if from alexa or content/quality/rare torrents or so rankings, it is sad to see you have left the best.
Pirating software you don't own is always illegal. But there are times when you do own software that you can't access without pirating it. The cruel irony is that in those times, you're probably more at risk of getting slapped with a lawsuit than real, actual pirates. Here's a guide to pirating like a pro to get back what's rightfully yours.
This guide is intended to help people who have already purchased software, but are for whatever reason unable to access their credentials, either temporarily or permanently. Gizmodo does not support software piracy. Further, this is general information, and you should proceed at your own peril.
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Don't Use the Pirate Bay
Think of the Pirate Bay like the red light district: It's impossible to shut down, but if the lawmen are looking to bust some heads, that's probably where they'll start. And copyright trolls are some particularly unimaginative lawmen.
Instead, try to get access to some of the closed torrent communities. Places like Demonoid or IPTorrents aren't as isolated as they once were, but they're way safer than the Pirate Bay or IsoHunt. They're invite-only, but invites aren't too hard to come by. Ask around, and one of your techy friends will probably have one to throw your way. Beyond that, always, always, always read the site's comments for warnings about not just pirate-tracking files embedded by nerd hunters, but potential malware.
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Use a Proxy
Hiding your IP address using a proxy is one of those nerdspeak tasks that sounds a lot more intimidating than it really is. Think of it as using a cutoff man in baseball, except with internet connections instead of shortstops. With torrents, all you've got to do is go to any number of lists of public proxies and paste any one of those addresses into the Proxy field of your BitTorrent client. Or, for a small fee, you can just partake of a ready-to-use service like the popular BTGuard, which does all the work for you. You literally just download and run the app, enter your login information, and then run your torrent. That simple.
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You can take this a step further by using a virtual private network (VPN), which BTGuard also offers. VPNs essentially do what the proxy does, but for all of your online actions. That's probably a little excessive for spot-pirating of a bit of software, but if you're worried about anyone tracking what you're doing on the web, it's something to look into.
The downside is that a VPN introduces an additional point of failure for your connection. That's not too much of a concern most of the time, as stable servers are usually just fine, and more automated options will adjust on the fly. But it's something to consider if you hate disruptions of service.
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Adjust Your BitTorrent Settings
Generally speaking, your ISP doesn't give a single damn about copyright violations going on in torrent transfers. It just cares about the massive spike in your bandwidth, and what it can do to stop it. If it can prove you're using BitTorrent, it'll just throttle the crap out of your connection.
To head your ISP off at the pass, go to your BitTorrent app's preferences and enable encryption. That'll make it harder to pin you down. The downside is that it also precludes you from connecting to other BT users who aren't using encryption. Many don't, but it's sort of like a (tiny bit extraneous) pirating condom. Better safe than sorry.
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You also might want to consider easing back on your max upload speeds. Traditional torrenting protocol says you should cap your max download speed at about 80 percent of your connection's maximum download speed, and your upload speed at about 10-20 percent of that. You can crank either up if you want, but limiting how much you upload at once can limit your exposure to being caught.
Do Not Seed
When you're using BitTorrent, you are constantly uploading and downloading data from other users. 'Seeding' is when you've finished downloading, and continue to upload to others. It's good manners, but it's also a bullseye on your head. That's what the lawyer zombie packs are really after. They'll try to pin the wider distribution charges on you if you're caught.
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This is where all the hardcore torrenters will come for my head. But listen up: This guide is about not getting caught. Not your online rep, not the health of the torrent community. Plain and simple, seeding is the easiest way to get caught for torrenting.
That said, many communities require you to maintain a strict upload-to-download ratio. And the ones that do are generally safer harbors than most. But seeding for long periods of time, especially on older torrents, is still risky.
Get a Serial Number
Office 2010 Torrent Pirate Bay
OK, so you've got your software downloaded without getting caught. Big deal. Lots of software is available for full public download as a trial, and just requires activation. And for that you need to track down an application called Serial Box.
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Serial Box is a comprehensive directory of working serials for pretty much any app or software suite you'd ever want to install. It covers past and present versions, and is available in both Windows and OS X flavors. To find it, just run its name through a search engine with the current month and year appended to it, along with your favorite direct download file sharing site. Like this: 'Serial Box 4-2012 Megaupload'—only with a site that still exists. RapidShare, maybe. From there, pick the free download (it can be hard to find on the page; sometimes it's called 'slow' download), and unzip and install the files.
You should see iSerial Reader, Serial Box, and SerialSeeker. Serial Box and SerialSeeker should both open to the same app, though, and they're the ones you want to use. Open either of those two up, find your software by scrolling or using the search bar, and click on the Serials tab. You'll find activation codes for every version of the software. Load 'er up.
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Keep Your Serial Number Active
Most software is designed to accept pre-defined serial numbers that abide by some algorithm or another. That's to let you install it even if you're not connected to the internet, but it also means that you can activate it using a serial number someone else has already used. Great. But then, your app is probably going to try to 'call home' to let its slave masters know that you're using the same authentication code as 25,000 other jackasses. Not great.
There are a few ways to stop this. The first is to employ a user-prompting firewall like Little Snitch to approve outgoing connections. That sounds more complicated than it is. All it does is ask you, with a pop-up, if you want to allow connections to or from your computer when they happen. You can accept or decline, and set your answer to be a one time thing, until a program quits, or to last forever (unless you change it manually). Do you want to let SoftwareCompanyActivation01 connect? No, no I don't. No thank you forever.
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Office 2007 Torrent Pirate Bay
Little Snitch and its ilk can be spammy, though, so go ahead and disable the prompts setting and simply scout out what the activation codes you've got to worry about and deny them manually ahead of time. No, you can't make Little Snitch's disable its own phone-home (anymore [easily]).
The other option is to brute-force disable the software's phone home in its actual files. Guides for this will probably be tough to track down for all but the most commonly pirated software. On Windows, this will involve finding your host file in System32 and pasting in a bit of text (that you can find from a basic Google search). The same thing goes for OS X, but in Terminal. This sounds a bit vague, but it's actually very simple to do once you've got the text you need.
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Keep the Install File on a Hard Drive
Sometimes you screw up and have to reinstall. Maybe your firewall hiccuped at the wrong moment and a call home was sent out, or you need to run a clean install of an OS. Having a copy of the install file of software you've downloaded will save you a lot of headaches, since if you have to re-download you're doubling your chances of getting caught by your ISP.
When in Doubt, Don't
If you follow through on every step listed here, you're going to be pretty hard to find. But it's still possible. And while being able to produce receipts for the software you're using illegally will temper whatever punishment you receive, the fact is, you can still get in some serious trouble for pirating software—even software you already own. Caveat latro.
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BitTorrent pirate site The Pirate Bay has begun shifting away from torrent files to another format, dubbed 'magnets,' which is a more modern way of sharing data that may help it go further underground.
The Pirate Bay announced on its blog on Thursday that it would make the magnet link the default option for downloading files. Links to torrent files will still remain on the site, but will be de-emphasized and phased out in a month, TorrentFreak reported.
'We've just changed places on the links,' The Pirate Bay said. 'Magnet is now default, Download torrent is now where the magnet links used to be. The reason is the same as always: Magnets are now good enough to use, and it's not as easy to block as .torrent files. Also it saves us a huge amount of bandwidth!'
Microsoft Office 2013 Torrent Pirate Bay
As the name suggests, TPB hosts thousands of torrents pointing to copyrighted files of all sorts, and has served as either one of the last bastions of freedom on the Internet, or a hive of scum and villainy—depending on one's perspective. A Dutch court this week ordered two ISPs in the Netherlands to block customers from accessing The Pirate Bay.
In 2010, a Swedish appeals court ruled against The Pirate Bay's creators—Peter Sunde, Gottfrid Svartholm Warg, Fredrik Neij, and Carl Lundstrom—upholding convictions handed down in 2009 for illegal file sharing.
What's a 'magnet'?
The BitTorrent protocol breaks down a file into a number of different pieces, which are shared back and forth between different clients. When a client has all of the pieces, the file is assembled, and he becomes another 'seed' to distribute pieces to whichever client needs them.
Each file shared to the decentralized BitTorrent network requires one centralized command point, however: the tracker. Although any computer the tracker, it also becomes a focus point for law enforcement activity. After The Pirate Bay shut down in Dec. 2009, it also terminated its tracker in favor of decentralized links like magnets. Until Thursday, however, the site never quite formally delivered on its promise.
As noted by Wikipedia, a magnet is simply a name for a cryptographic hash of the file, rather than a location of where it might be found.
A peer-to-peer client like BitTorrent or one of its derivatives still needs to query an IP for the file and its sources. But that IP can be better hidden via proxy—putting the file at arms length from whomever began distributing it, and providing additional legal protection.
The problem, as noted by some commenters to the BitTorrent post, is that some Web clients don't support magnets, while others don't use them as efficiently as torrents.
'I've tested magnet links several times,' 'newtown8573' wrote. 'I have encountered more than once that magnet links will just sit and do nothing (waiting for basic torrent info). When i downloaded the torrent file instead it started to download as usual. So magnet links do not function as good as torrent files!'
Pirates also have other options, such as private trackers and DirectConnect+, which allows users to connect to 'hubs' and share files.
For more from Mark, follow him on Twitter @MarkHachman.