Jul 8, 2019
How pirate sites hide their links, and why detection has to adapt
The link is still there. It just takes more steps to reach.
In short: older link sites listed host links directly in the page. Many now hide them behind scripts, redirects and interstitial pages, so a simple crawler sees nothing to report. Detection has to follow the same steps a visitor's browser does.
Common techniques
- Players and links that are only loaded by script after the page opens.
- Chains of redirects and link shorteners between the page and the host.
- Interstitial pages, pop-ups and click-to-reveal buttons.
- Encoded or split URLs that are put back together in the browser.
- Ready-made site templates that make it quick to launch many similar sites.
Why it matters
If monitoring stops at the visible page, the host behind it is never found and never sent a notice. The page may be reported, but the file keeps serving through other pages.
What works
Rendering pages the way a browser does, following each step to the final host, and recognising when a new site is built on a known template. Each method needs regular updates, because the techniques keep changing.
Related service: Piracy monitoring.