Pirate Bay User Downloads Visualized in Real-Time Art Installation

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http://torrentfreak.com/pirate-bay-user-downloads-visualized-in-real-time-art-installation-130521/

The file-sharing activities of BitTorrent users have become the input mechanism powering an art installation currently underway in Canada. The Pirate Cinema, a control room featuring three large screens and viewing area, is displaying a mashup of content pulled from the top 100 torrent swarms indexed by The Pirate Bay. Its creators inform TorrentFreak that with a little help from an encrypted connection to Sweden, some intriguing images are being realized.

There can be little doubt that of the millions of file-sharers using The Pirate Bay today, only a relatively small proportion will be aware of just how public their activities are.

At any given time there are dozens of organizations monitoring torrent swarms, sucking up and storing IP addresses, file hashes and timestamps for all kinds of reasons, from genuine research and “six strikes” educational programs, to the preparation of lawsuits.

However, even those aware of surveillance may be surprised at the nature of the monitoring currently being carried out by artist Nicolas Maigret and software developer Brendan Howell. Together they have created The Pirate Cinema, a BitTorrent-watching mechanism that turns file-sharers’ activities and geographic locations into an art installation.