U.S. authorities have shut down one of the world’s largest file-sharing websites and arrested its owners on a number of charges, including illegally sharing pirated material. The action against Megaupload is said to be one of the largest-ever criminal copyright cases brought by the U.S. government. The site’s owners and operators were arrested in New Zealand as part of a raid spanning nine countries. The shutdown came just one day after the global online protests against a pair of anti-piracy bills in Washington. In response to the operation against Megaupload, hackers with the group “Anonymous” shut down the websites of the the U.S. Justice Department, Recording Industry Association of America, Motion Picture Association of America, and Universal Music.