ExtraTorrent's sudden shuttering last week left many, including users, and commentators, in total shock. And other torrent sites are both celebrating and scrambling to keep up with the situation.
According to TorrentFreak, the closure of ExtraTorrent caused a surge in traffic for the search term "torrent sites" on Google, and the other remaining torrent sites all saw a significant traffic boost.
The Pirate Bay was a prime beneficiary, with the traffic spiking so much that it caused access problems for many users. Other sites report an increase of more than 100,000 unique visitors per day.
The site's closure has also become a great opportunity for those less scrupulous. Already, many fake and clone sites have been set up, many are simply TPB clones with a new skin, while others are far more insidious.
Scant details are available about the reason why ExtraTorrent shut down. When users visited the popular site on May 17, they were simply met with a message indicating that not only is the site down permanently, that all data has been deleted. The message specifically warns against fakes and clones, but it appears many users have still been duped.
[via TorrentFreak]
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