# Downloading in college **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 14, 2003, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/downloading-in-college/201628 "2003-09-14T22:23:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![NoeSchittMann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c0e974/32.png) [@NoeSchittMann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NoeSchittMann)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2003, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/downloading-in-college/201628/1 "2003-09-14T22:23:29Z")
I’m in college right now and my college does not allow students to go on ftp sites and download files from Kazaa and other programs like that. I was wondering how on earth they would know if I went on Kazaa to download stuff. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2003, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/downloading-in-college/201628/2 "2003-09-14T22:31:13Z")
All the computers on campus are run through the school’s network. The network admin can block access to particular site, or keep track of what sites you visit with no problem. At the extremem end of security, they can even log every mouse click and keystroke and keep track of everything you do on the internet, and you’d never know it. ---
**Author:** ![Achernar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e274bd/32.png) [@Achernar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achernar)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2003, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/downloading-in-college/201628/3 "2003-09-14T23:15:48Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Q.E.D. \* > At the extremem end of security, they can even log every mouse click and keystroke and keep track of everything you do on the internet, and you’d never know it. Wait, really? Keeping track of everything you do on the internet I understand, but logging every mouse click and keystroke? Is it really that simple? Can my ISP do that? ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2003, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/downloading-in-college/201628/4 "2003-09-14T23:20:59Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Achernar \* > \*\*Wait, really? Keeping track of everything you do on the internet I understand, but logging every mouse click and keystroke? Is it really that simple? Can my ISP do that? \*\* No. As I said, it’s extreme, and it requires a keystroke logging program to be installed on your machine. Many businesses do just this, in fact. It would be harder at a university, where normally students bring their own machines. But they could distribute an install disk that the student would need to run before they could access the network, and this could conceivably install such software. I don’t know of any university actually doing this, however. ---
**Author:** ![Trom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@Trom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trom)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2003, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/downloading-in-college/201628/5 "2003-09-15T01:08:18Z")
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**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2003, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/downloading-in-college/201628/6 "2003-09-15T01:10:00Z")
Also - I may be wrong here, I’m not a techie - I think the universities can block sites that take up a lot of bandwidth, which would include filesharing sites. ---
**Author:** ![Eurograff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/df705f/32.png) [@Eurograff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eurograff)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2003, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/downloading-in-college/201628/7 "2003-09-15T01:34:32Z")
And especially if university is talking about blocking access to filesharing services and ftp, this means they’ve probably closed certain ports on the network. For example ftp uses port 21, Kazaa port 1214 and so on. This way admins could simply block access to any service of this kind, and you would be unable to use them at all even if you try, if I understand it correctly. ---
**Author:** ![Trom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@Trom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trom)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2003, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/downloading-in-college/201628/8 "2003-09-15T01:44:51Z")
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**Author:** ![Eurograff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/df705f/32.png) [@Eurograff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eurograff)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2003, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/downloading-in-college/201628/9 "2003-09-15T02:05:53Z")
- - - . ---
**Author:** ![Mike.V](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Mike.V](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mike.V)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2003, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/downloading-in-college/201628/10 "2003-09-15T03:44:56Z")
I believe the problem with using port 80 is that you’re confusinghoe the ports are used. Port 80 is the usually used to _host_ http sites, but clients (i.e. you) connect via different, and usually pretty random ports. - - - . I sent a request to the site’s server which received it on port 80, but the response (the web page) was received by my computer on port 1665. So it would make sense that college’s would block port 80 to prevent people from hosting web sites from their dorm rooms. Please correct me if I’m wrong, though. ---
**Author:** ![alterego](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6bbea6/32.png) [@alterego](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alterego)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2003, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/downloading-in-college/201628/11 "2003-09-15T06:14:01Z")
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**Author:** ![Nanoda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Nanoda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nanoda)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2003, 8:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/downloading-in-college/201628/12 "2003-09-15T08:24:35Z")
Sorry dudes. I’m with anyone who’s had to download course related stuff between the packets of a Kazaa’d “Linkin Park” mp3. Our sysadmins allowed access by MAC after major contract signage, and were mercilessly brutal when packet sniffing uncovered bandwidth unfriendly behaviour. ---
**Author:** ![xash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/c6cbf5/32.png) [@xash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xash)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2003, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/downloading-in-college/201628/13 "2003-09-15T17:44:01Z")
We do not permit discussion on circumventing network/security policies. **NoeSchittMann** , questions related to file-sharing programs are restricted on these boards. Please read the [FAQ](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=106617) and the [Registration Agreement](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=148527) carefully and completely before you post your next question. This is closed. - **xash** General Questions Moderator