P2P gets blamed for lots of things. Rampant piracy, declining music sales (bogus, of course), starving artists, virus propagation and more. Is it also responsible, however, for identify theft? That's what Congress is asking the FTC to find out, launching an investigation into the possibility that P2P programs and the networks they use pose security risks that increase the chance of identity theft.

The FTC hasn't responded to whether or not they will actually execute the investigation, though I imagine the millions of dollars spent will be well worth a “Yes” or “No” answer. Regardless, the level of security risk a P2P app might bring is probably vastly outweighed by fraudulent sites asking for credit cards or thieves rummaging through trash bins looking for bank statements.

Even if a study should conclude that P2P apps are more likely to expose someones private data to the outside world than the norm, what will they do from there?