Thousands of proxy sites for popular download sites including The Pirate Bay, KickassTorrents, ExtraTorrent have mysteriously vanished prompting users to turn to the remaining proxy sites for their torrent needs. These sites were recently linked to the now-defunct mother site ProxyHouse, whose domain name is already up for sale.

According to The Independent, numerous proxy sites that offer file-sharing services have disappeared without warning. It was reported that their proxy servers were all connected to the ProxyHouse operation - that of which has also been taken down. The shutdown was attributed as a result of long-running efforts by law enforcement agencies in its fight against piracy.

Proxy sites are used for both legal and illegal purposes. They allow user access to sites anonymously. They work illegally by replicating websites under another domain name that have previously been blocked for particular reasons.

It was further reported that these proxy sites have also been shut down, with many of their domain names up for sale. However, thousands of replica websites are still available for the most determined pirates.

Another article by Billboard suggested that the missing proxies were also connected to a site called ProxyAds along with ProxyHouse. Missing domains include piratelist.net, kickasstorrents.nu and piratebay.onl. It was also reported that even though The Pirate Bay is no longer operating in most European countries such as Norway, Italy, France, and the U.K., it may still be accessed through thousands of other clones available online.

An article from the Register reported that the Swedish government has recently decided to appeal to a court decision that protected the domains used by The Pirate Bay from suspended operations. It was due to the appeal that The Pirate Bay remains in control of .se domains which redirect visitors to thepiratebay.vg and thepiratebay.mn.

Authorities have gone through a seemingly rigorous cat-and-mouse game to try and take down torrent sites that provide access to illegal downloads. Piracy numbers continue to rise globally each year. Studies claim that piracy is most rampant in Venezuela, Indonesia and China and most illegal downloads target software.