Warez group

A warez group is a tightly organised group of people involved in creating and/or distributing warez such as movies, music or software ("warez") in The Scene. There are different types of these groups in the Scene: release groups and courier groups. Groups often compete, as being the first to bring out a new quality release can bring status and respect - a type of "vanity contest". The warez groups care about the image others have of them. The primary motivation of warez groups is not monetary gain, but the excitement of breaking rules and beating competitors. Although at least two Scene groups have been asking for bitcoin donations, PoWeRUp and spamTV. Individual members of these groups are usually also the authors of cracks and keygens.

There are warez groups publishing new content outside of the Scene, often referred to as P2P groups. They are a lot more accessible for people with access to new movies and are not limited to a set of rules and regulations.

The FBI have been combating warez groups with Operation: Cyberstrike, Operation Buccaneer, Operation Fastlink, Operation Safehaven and Operation Site Down. Similarly, the P2P group IMAGiNE has been disbanded due to law enforcement actions.

Some game and software groups include Razor 1911, Reloaded, DrinkOrDie, Pirates With Attitude, Class, Myth and Fairlight. For a larger list, see the list of warez groups.

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