There has been a lot of talk about legal torrents recently with some of the biggest torrent websites forcibly or voluntarily shutting down. Creators are outraged at how much torrent websites get away with encroaching on their copyrights indirectly. It’s important to note that many torrent websites do encourage owners to file complaints with them. They do comply with the owners’ wishes and remove the offending torrents if creators come forward with such requests.
Is Downloading Torrent Movies Illegal?
The problem is that torrent websites are accused of enabling others to steal property by being a middleman. If torrent websites hadn’t existed, it would have been much easier to track down similar cybercrime and take legal action. Before torrenting, users would just upload copyrighted content on the internet and the creator could pinpoint them easily. The amount of speculation surrounding legal torrents may lead to wonder if torrenting is illegal in the US.
Read: Alternatives for Kickass Torrent
How do Torrents Work?
You need to understand the mechanism of torrenting to answer questions such as whether or not downloading movies is illegal for personal use? Basically, it’s a form of networking constructed on the idea of peer-to-peer file sharing or (P2P in short). It’s been around for more than ten years and remains the best way to find content for free even if it has been copyrighted. The torrent websites don’t take the responsibility for any copyright violations but do accept requests for removing torrents from affected owners.
Also Read: How to Check Your Torrent IP Address
It’s quite easy to see the problem here. Once you create content and wish to acquire full rights to it, you get an official copyright certificate from the authorities. It may seem like a waste of money to Torrent users in the exposed online world of today, but it’s a legal document of ownership granted by the relevant governing body. It’s usually temporary but for whatever time has been stated in the copyright certificate, that content belongs to the one who applied for it. This is tricky because some creators cannot afford to apply for proper copyrights or they are too carefree about it. Do you see the loophole? Anyone can steal their content or develop similar content before applying for a legal copyright certificate. Now, this content belongs to the copycat party and not the true owner. As mentioned, not everyone applies for this document which means there’s endless content anyone can pick up and upload on their chosen platform. Torrenting websites can then easily locate it making it available to every Torrent user out there. The result is that the content is stolen without the express permission of the developer but the owner cannot file a copyright claim against anyone since they don’t legally own that content. This is the loophole Torrenting websites take advantage of. Is it unethical? Yes. Is Torrenting illegal? No. It’s not guilt-free downloading unless the creator has uploaded content for free or their copyright limit has expired.
Instead of collecting data from a single source, each file is constructed by gathering pieces from several different online sources. This act is performed simultaneously and the end result is perfectly organized, giving you a complete file that is free of corruption. You simply visit a torrent website and search for what you want. There are filters and categories to help you out. Once your download has ended, you may allow ‘seeding’ which means that the distribution of the full file has happened. So, a ‘seeder’ both downloads and uploads data. A ‘leech’, on the other hand, is a user who doesn’t allow seeding after downloading, so they have a negative effect on the system. Hence, being a ‘leech’ is not something to be proud of. Users may find all kinds of files including software, music, videos, games, and applications. It’s totally free of cost which is great for users but terrible for creators who don’t receive a royalty for their work.
Is Torrenting Illegal in the US?
Stealing copyrighted content and distributing it for free is certainly illegal in several countries including the US. This means that you should steer clear of torrents that infringe upon the rights of owners. It’s not that hard to check whether a file is copyrighted. If it is available for download at a price on its official website, it’s surely copyrighted. Owners always mention if a file is available for free, so it is better looking out for that. You might also see older versions of a book or the final version sent for review among torrents before its actual release. Uploading and downloading this kind of content is illegal.
There are times when the copyright has expired or the uploader has discovered some sort of loophole to use as an excuse. Torrents are not illegal as a whole, but when they don’t respect copyrights, they become a target for the federal US government. The authorities have taken strict actions against torrent websites in the past and continue to monitor them closely. You should try not to risk yourself over an illegal torrent download, especially when you can purchase that file through proper channels.
What are Legal Torrents?
It is solely dependent upon the copyright laws of your country telling you whether or not torrenting is legal. This means you need to look them up in advance. The US is quite strict about protecting the rights of owners. Therefore, you’ve got to read up on these laws in detail. There’s little chance of you finding ways around making it legal if you reside in the US. Copyrights are set in place for decades or a lifetime. The question still arises if downloading movies is illegal for personal use? Yes! It’s not that difficult to rent a DVD or subscribe to a streaming service like Netflix. You don’t want to face warnings or legal action in the worst case scenario just for a movie. There are some great apps to buy music legally and support your favorite artists. Many software products are available free of viruses on their official websites. Books could be borrowed from fellow bookworms or libraries if you don’t want to visit a bookstore.
Also Read: Bittorrent vs uTorrent
There are authors that offer their books for free sometimes for a limited time, so take advantage of that. You could also sign up to become a reviewer. Musicians upload their music for free streaming on SoundCloud which is a great place to discover new artists. Mobile applications with in-app purchases may be downloaded and run for free as well. There are plenty of ways to find free content and legal torrents too.
How to Torrent Safely?
There’s always the danger of viruses corrupting your system, so a good anti-virus is necessary before you start torrenting. You’ll learn to recognize high-quality torrents from the feedback of other users. If you’re unsure about illegal torrents, you can take an extra step to shield yourself from the wrath of the authorities.
A VPN is a virtual private network that protects you from hackers and organizations seeking to collect sensitive data while you’re online.
If there’s content which you cannot obtain legally due to location, availability or payment method issues a reliable VPN is the best way to Torrent safely. Normally, your internet data moves freely between devices. This means that anyone using the same network as you (whether it’s a Wi-Fi or a local network) can quickly access it all and hack into your system. A VPN produces a secure encrypted channel through which all your data passes. This shields your system and data from prying eyes like intelligence agencies or hackers.
Here’s How You Can Best Use Torrent
Try to choose a VPN that is not based in a country with unfavorable user privacy laws. The US is notorious for snooping around gathering data you’d rather keep confidential.
Pick a Torrent VPN that is located in a country where they are not obligated to hand over customer data.
It would be perfect if that VPN company does not keep any logs of their users. VPNs slow down internet speed which is a turnoff for torrent users. So look for a VPN that is popular for its high speed, especially made stronger to withstand heavy tasks over the internet like torrenting. The best case scenario would be to pick a VPN which has special features for P2P sharing.
It would be incorrect to say that torrenting in general is illegal in every country. You’ll just have to pick smart ways to avoid yourself being caught torrenting.
Also Read: Best BitTorrent Client
If you are living in a place where torrenting is illegal such as the United States of America, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, etc., our suggestion would be to connect yourself from locations such as India, Pakistan, Switzerland, Bangladesh etc. This will let you avoid any restrictions when using Torrent and enjoy a free experience.
To make the last step easier for you which is usually quite mindboggling we have reviewed a few Torrent websites. Let’s dig into some best torrent websites of 2019 you can safely download torrents from using a VPN.
Top Safe Torrent Websites of 2019
If you’re looking for a torrent website and you have a hard time selecting which out of the gazillions are the best ones to pick from, you might bookmark this list of best torrent websites we have compiled for you. If you’re wondering if these are legal too, then it again depends upon the country you reside in. But certainly, if you are using a VPN for torrenting, which you’re already convinced why you should, it will make you anonymous and no government could tell that you have been violating the laws since you belong to nowhere using a VPN. So, bingo!
The criteria on which we have made this list are whether these torrent websites are providing quality torrents and if there are plenty of seeders which is all torrenters are looking for. So, without further ado, here’s the list of best torrent websites of 2019.
The Private Bay
Of course, this classic tops our list because it is the oldest in the game with quite a lot of seeders. Because it is one of the pioneers, users trust their torrents on top of everything and so do we!
RARBG
If all you are looking for is that pixelated quality, then this is the right torrent site for you. It has that HD content you are after. One more thing, it may not have many torrents and quantity is low but the quality will satisfy any P2P enthusiast.
Also Check: Best Torrent Sites of 2019
ExtraTorrent
This is one of those torrent websites that have struggled and fought for survival. Another big hit in the torrent industry which has not only made it but made it well through the years.
LimeTorrents
This is one huge-database torrent websites according to users. Their frequency is quite good which is why their torrents keep coming back and so they built an enormous database of a huge collection of legitimate torrents you may be looking for. You’d definitely not want to miss this popular one.
1337X
This best torrent website is best for vintage lovers. If you are looking for old and obscure videos, this is the right choice for you. Although their database may not be as large as a few other giants on this list, they sure have that oldie matter you have searched everywhere in vain for.
TorrentDownloads
We had to put one at the end, but this typically fits the cliche ‘last but not the least’. Everybody, including us, loves their bold torrent detail page. This gives you an idea of their reliability, on top of that, you get some good quality content and a big database to search on. All this definitely makes this option a part of out best torrent websites list.
1 Comment
thanks for this guide, i was really worried after downloading the Infinity War, as my cousin told me about the copy rights notice here in Australia. I should really be careful while torrenting. Guys stay safe, torrent safely with the vpn