Paywall bypass
 

I'm using two paywall bypass tools,

Archive Today https://archive.ph/
so far works 100% of the time

and
12 Foot Ladder https://12ft.io/
Works about 90% of the time

I will post this thread in GT and then move it to PC Hardware/Software after a few weeks.

Yes, that works with quite some websites, though not all. I use the first one since a few months for several German newspapers. It works in 2 of 3 cases, or papers.

Combining it with Google website translator however often fails.


Will try the second one, too, that one was new to me.

Isn't that a violation of the CFAA? (not the software itself, but the bypassing of paywalls)

Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA)

https://uk.practicallaw.thomsonreute...%20information.

MaDef is right and he's maybe wrong at the same time, where are Subsim's barrack room lawyers when you need them. The software takes a snapshot of a web page and archives them somehow, that is probably not illegal, but, the software has to access that paywall site and if you haven't paid for the privilege of seeing such information that is probably illegal.

Hmmmmm.
As a fine upstanding member of my local community (I don't know where I got that from but it sounds nice) I would never use any software that would potentially give me a criminal record even though it's freely available to use on the interweb.

Case Ongoing.

The first of Neal'S two softwares is available as a Firefox app, and I would assume that Mozilla has a lawyers' backroom club taking care fo such things and checking them out. They have withdrawn apps for legal reasons in past years. Its in Mozilla's own interest to make sure its apps do not violate legal standards and by that criminlaise the behaviour of Mozilla. Why woudl they allow an app to compromise their legal status?

In Germany it is illegal only when the original material, the text you want to read, gets altered or manipulated in the process of evading the paywall. It is up to the website owner to install measures that make sure the paywall cannot be avoided. And some do it: as I said, the tools do not work with every website, some stay blocked with them.

If somebody wants to make sure nobody unwanted gets to read his texts, he can make sure that nobody can for sure.

Note that available common VPN software does allow you to access foreign content and streams that originally were blocked for the world region you live in. So far, nobody has taken legal action over that, too, AFAIK.

And youtube constantly alters its schemes by which it tries to neutralise currently existing video grabbers that allow you to download youtube videos. The availability of such tools/apps could simply be declared illegal by the lawmaker, but instead the companies must take the tougher way of constantly fighting the uphill battle and changign their technical ways to spoil it for the existing tools. So that new tools get developed and released. I think there are also mods for Android that allow you to shut down the screen on your smartphone but having the sound of youtube (music) playing on. Google does not want it, they want you to buy a monthly abo to allow you that. Still, the apps/mods existed last time I checked. I am just not interested in that noise.

I've had pretty good success with refreshing browser page and stopping it before it completes the process.

Skybird, a regional block is different from a paywall. Bypassing a regional block is analogous to smuggling (ie; importing goods not legally available), whereas bypassing a paywall is like stealing a newspaper or magazine (aka theft).

Your post poses a moral question, If bypassing a paywall isn't considered theft, what is the rationale behind that position. and if it is considered theft, why is it acceptable to engage in the behavior.

Not making judgements here, just curious. While I'm not particularly religious, I do hold hard and fast to a few tenets of the Bible. The top 2 are, Do Not Lie & Do Not Steal.

I found this last summer.


https://popzazzle.blogspot.com/2022/...-paywalls.html


Respect for respect. Its a mutual thing.

And this is what archive.today actually is and what it does.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archive.today

Neal, as a website owner/operator, I am surprised you would post such a thing.

How is this different than your policy on video game pirating posts?

I don’t think using something like the above links is actually bypassing any effective security features. Especially when all I have to do for some websites is just turn off Java Script and I won’t even know a paywall exists. It’s also my IP and I can change it anytime I want with a VPN.

Paywall or no paywall the only thing that might be considered illegal is what you do with the content you have access too.

I'm becoming more liberal with age.

Olympus has fallen.
London has fallen.
Angel has fallen.

Now soon in the cinemas:
Lone Star has fallen.


:D

After a lot of obfuscation and twisted logic, the article comes to the conclusion that bypassing paywalls is not a good thing, and could very well result in internet user privacy issues in the future.

Talk about splitting hairs, Theft is ok as long as the lock is weak?

A quote by Anselme Batbie (1872) comes to mind, but I understand it's bad form to insult you're host.:D

What I meant by paywalls are not an effective security measure. Is they are simply not considered a security measure.

The biggest issue with using JavaScript is it could insert malicious code and that will directly affect your computer. What’s illegal about me preventing a source from downloading script to my PC?

Legal issues over articles arise from copywrite laws. Such as copy & pasting articles regardless if it’s free or not even if you acknowledge the source or not.