Major illegal Sky Sports streaming network used by 22m to watch Premier League games is shut down with 5 UK homes raided
One of the largest illegal streaming networks in the world has been shut down for allegedly offering thousands of premium channels at a discounted price.
The websites allegedly housed 2,500 channels, including Sky Sports, as well as films and TV shows.
Over a hundred homes were searched in a massive police operation that spanned many European countries.
The most recent campaign against piracy involved raids on five residences in the United Kingdom.
Eleven people were taken into custody after law enforcement, assisted by Europol and Eurojust, identified 102 suspects across Europe.
Along with over 270 pieces of IPTV equipment that were reportedly utilized to support the operation, at least 29 servers were confiscated.
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As a result, one hundred domains have been taken offline.
Matt Hibbert, Group Director of Anti-Piracy at Sky, stated, “This sends a strong message that, alongside our partners, we are committed to dismantling pirate networks across borders and holding their ringleaders accountable.”
“We will continue supporting efforts to end digital piracy and protect consumers from the risks of these illegal services.”
It is estimated that the network generated over 208 million dollars in income each month.
In addition to several narcotics and firearms, police seized over 1.3 million cryptocurrencies and 33,000 dollars in cash from properties connected to the conspiracy.
In order to take down the sites, UK police collaborated with equivalents from Bulgaria, Croatia, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Romania, Sweden, and Switzerland.
IPTV Crackdown
In the largest portion of the police operation, 270 officers searched 89 residences across 15 regions in Italy.
The Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA), which has Sky and the Premier League among its members, co-president Mark Mulready, issued a warning: “We will continue to closely collaborate with law enforcement agencies in Europe and beyond to enable them to successfully identify, investigate, and prosecute large-scale cross-border pirate networks.”
In an effort to shut down illicit streaming networks, police have conducted several raids in recent years.
Police and IP protection group FACT launched one of the largest crackdowns on illegal streaming in the UK in July, resulting in the issuance of warnings to 40 unlawful streaming providers.
According to data from the Intellectual Property Office (IPO), piracy and counterfeiting cost the economy $9 billion a year.
Cybercriminals can utilize jailbroken streaming devices to gain access to your Wi-Fi and subsequently to other electronic devices connected to the same network, according to a recent expert who spoke to The Sun.
Warning over ‘jailbroken’ Fire Sticks
Many devices are capable of providing illegal streaming, but the most popular ones are “jailbroken” Fire Sticks, which have third-party media server software installed on them.
Kodi is the most widely used piece of software.
Although it is illegal to use in the UK, it can give users unrestricted access to new features and apps that the standard version of the device wouldn’t allow.
However, using a box to stream free subscription channels turns it into a crime.
Additionally, it is against the law to purchase or sell these modified devices, which are now referred to as “fully-loaded” gadgets because of the way the software has been changed to grant access to channels that need a subscription.
According to the government at the time, these gadgets are acceptable as long as they are used to view information that is authorized and free to air.
Once they are modified to stream illegal content—such as TV shows, movies, and subscription sports channels—without the necessary subscriptions, they are considered illegal.
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