Spotify has faced a significant breach as Anna's Archive, a notorious pirate project, claims to have downloaded nearly 99.6% of the platform's active music library. This amounts to approximately 86 million tracks, equating to a data volume of nearly 300 terabytes.
Project Details and Reach
The hacking community involved stated that the archive will be distributed via torrents. They selected tracks based on an internal popularity metric, arguing that their selection covers most of the music actually listened to on Spotify. However, this is a subset of Spotify’s entire catalog, which comprises around 256 million songs.
Spotify's Response and Measures
In response to the breach, Spotify contacted Engadget, revealing that they have deactivated the accounts used for unauthorized downloads. The company has implemented additional security measures and now monitors for suspicious activity to protect artists against piracy.
Implications for Music Industry
This breach highlights ongoing challenges in digital security and piracy within the music industry. It underscores the tension between access to digital content and the preservation of intellectual property rights.
