Kim Dotcom offering users 50 GB of free storage.
Kim Dotcom has launched Megaupload's successor, Mega, with the site already boasting astronomical success.
During the 24 hours of its launch, over one million users signed up to the file sharing service, with creator Kim Dotcom stressing that "we cannot be stopped". He confirmed that users are able to receive 50 gigabytes of free storage from Mega.co.nz, which is considerably more than the amount offered by rivals including Microsoft's SkyDrive and Dropbox.
Mega will be encrypted, subsequently allowing only those who upload data to have access to it. To further strengthen security, data is also being stored in the cloud. The site is apparently raid-proof through the implementation of an "Advanced Encryption Standard algorithm".
"This is not some kind of finger to the US government or to Hollywood," he reiterated. "Legally, there's just nothing there that could be used to shut us down. This site is just as legitimate and has the right to exist as Dropbox, Boxnet and other competitors."
After Mega went online on Sunday, it was followed by a lavish launch party held at Dotcom's New Zealand mansion. During the event, he re-enacted the raid that took place last year in his home by New Zealand authorities with a helicopter and actors dressed as armed police.
"The internet belongs to no man," he stated. "These attempts to rule the internet are against innovation and must stop." He added that "our copyrights and access were taken from us without a trial or notice and that "Those who try to stifle technology and innovation will be left on the side of the road in innovation and history."
Dotcom continued on to stress how New Zealand residents have given Mega great support over the last year. "We will protect the rights of everyone – today is the anniversary of something horrible, but now it is also the anniversary of something wonderful."
"According to the United Nations, privacy is a basic human right. The government is spying on you and completely invading you basic human right. If I’m not doing anything illegal, why is my data being captured? Mega believes in your right to privacy and has developed technology that keeps your data private and safe. By using Mega, you say no to those who want to know everything about you. You say no to governments that want to spy on you. You say YES to internet freedom and your right to privacy."
The U.S. government had previously warned Dotcom not to launch Mega as it would seemingly breach his New Zealand bail conditions.
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Make no mistake, Kim Dotcom is a criminal. He was a criminal before he even founded Megaupload, when he fled Europe to NZ to avoid charges there and changed his name to Dotcom. But he is one smart and manipulative criminal and has pretty much pulled down the pants of the United States DoJ. They aren't going to do anything this time, because after the outcry from last time, New Zealand officials are unlikely to bend to the US' whims ever again. He allowed them to the first time, considering he owns property in Hong Kong and the US government isn't so much as going to sneeze if he retreats there. He probably orchestrated this entire thing and walked away even richer for it.
The US Department of Commerce still has veto power and oversight over Internet policy and administration through its contract with ICANN. Additionally, most of the generic TLDs are fully subject to US law.
I have a few problems with this statement... lets start with "data is also being stored in the cloud". OF COURSE IT IS THE "CLOUD" IS THEIR SERVERS.
The first and last sentances in that same quote go together. It is encrypted with AES.
Besides all of the above the only way it would really be "raid-proof" is if Mega's servers didn't have access to the AES keys (which I suspect they do). A secure implementation would be to generate and store the key ONLY on the client. This way if the servers get raided there is only encrypted data without any keys.
I have a few problems with this statement... lets start with "data is also being stored in the cloud". OF COURSE IT IS THE "CLOUD" IS THEIR SERVERS.
The first and last sentances in that same quote go together. It is encrypted with AES.
Besides all of the above the only way it would really be "raid-proof" is if Mega's servers didn't have access to the AES keys (which I suspect they do). A secure implementation would be to generate and store the key ONLY on the client. This way if the servers get raided there is only encrypted data without any keys.
Actually I suspect that is exactly what it's doing. When you "upload" your files you chose a "password", that password then becomes the seed that generated the encryption key. Anyone you share that password with will be able to download the files, Kim himself won't be able to decrypt them. This creates an interesting legal situation, he can legally say he has no idea what the users data is and doesn't have access to it. The MPAA trolls who haunt file sharing sites will have a tough time getting access to the files and therefor won't be able to send complaints / take down notices. And if somehow the US Government raids his facility, the system will be useless as they won't have the millions of access keys required to look at the data.
So by "raid-proof" he means that since he doesn't have the keys, he couldn't be forced to give them to a law enforcement agency.
And it still can't use anything other than * was my intent. Missing an edit here...
As long as this is the case, I don't see why anyone would have a problem with the Mega service. If the uploader is the only one who can access the data that s/he uploads, then Mega isn't a file sharing service anymore. It's a cloud service.
I still think people are going to try to shut them down. For that reason, I wouldn't trust my files on their servers.
Reread it again. I said the password would be the seed for the encryption key, anyone having the password would be able to decrypt the file. The passwords would not be stored (hopefully) at mega. Of course their could also be a 100% access method upon which anyone can access a file.
This is no different then places that encrypt their .zip's and post the password near the link. It's done to throw off the MPIA's spider bots.
The site is a marvel to behold. HTML5 at it's finest. Also, having no problems using Opera for instance.