Illegal IPTV fire stick warning as police turn attention to Facebook and WhatsApp

A fresh warning has been issued over illegal IPTV streams after a fire stick empire was crushed by police turning their attention to Facebook and WhatsApp.

IPTV - or to give it its full name, Internet Protocol television - is often harnessed by criminals to provide illegal streaming platforms to view thousands of films and TV shows.

Links are often provided for free or a heavily discounted price, with the discounted 'subscriptions' pocketed by the organised criminals supplying them.

It has seen millions lost in revenue to the likes of the Premier League, Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video, and Warner Bros as their content is taken from the source and illegally offered out, with profits not going back to them.

This reason is why authorities are increasingly taking a more aggressive stance when it comes to taking down those supplying the illegal content, which very often is done via jailbroken Amazon Fire TV Sticks.

In these instances, criminals bypass the fire stick operating system to install the IPTV apps before selling them on to those who don't want to pay proper subscription fees.

Now, police have acted to take down one fire stick selling empire that cost copyright holders more than £500,000 in lost revenue.

What has happened?

FACT (Federation Against Copyright Theft) and Merseyside Police Cyber Crime Unit have worked together to convict a fire stick seller using a fake name on Facebook to sell modified fire stick devices.

Attention turned to Kevin James O'Donnell, 41, in July 2022 after FACT found he had been promoting an illegal IPTV subscription service on Facebook.

A legitimate fire stick controller (Nathan Stirk/Getty Images)

O'Donnell, from Liverpool, operated under a fake name - 'Kevo James' - with an account boasting more than 3,600 members, using the platform to sell the modified fire sticks with premium film and TV channels, including live football.

These devices were illicitly configured to provide unauthorised access to sports, television channels, and movie content, bypassing the likes of Sky Sports and TNT Sports.

IPTV is often used to illegally access copyrighted films, shows, and premium live TV (Getty Stock Images)

What did police find and how much money did he make?

Merseyside Police raided O'Donnell's house on 4 July last year. He was arrested, interviewed, and released under investigation pending further inquiries.

The arrest resulted in the seizure of digital devices, including computers, laptops, mobile phones and modified fire sticks.

Further forensic examinations found that these premium packages, between £40 and £85 for a 12-month contract, were offered directly on a fire stick fully loaded with the IPTV service.

O’Donnell facilitated transactions through Facebook direct messaging or WhatsApp and provided delivery services by post or in person.

It is estimated that O’Donnell made more than £130,000 defrauding content owners of over half a million pounds.

Netflix content is often stolen and supplied to illegal IPTV services (Phil Barker/Future Publishing via Getty Images)

What happened to him?

O'Donnell has this week been handed a two year suspended sentence after pleading guilty to charges of promoting and selling illegally modified firesticks that offered unauthorised access to premium film and television content, including live football matches.

The verdict, handed down on Tuesday (4 June) at Liverpool Crown Court, followed on from the investigation by FACT and Merseyside Police Cyber Crime Unit.

What has been said?

Kieron Sharp, CEO of FACT, said: “We are immensely grateful for the diligent work carried out by Merseyside Police Cyber Crime Unit.

"Their collaboration with FACT has been instrumental in holding O’Donnell accountable for his actions. This case highlights the importance of protecting legitimate providers as well as the significant impact that coordinated law enforcement efforts can have on combating digital piracy.

"The message is very clear: if you sell a device that provides access to content that is not licensed to you or owned by you, you could face criminal investigation, prosecution, and possible conviction.”

Watching premium sport on IPTV is illegal (Getty Stock Images)

Detective Inspector Steve Frame added: “We have been working closely with FACT to ensure that O’Donnell is made to answer for his actions, and this was a great example of how police and industry experts can come together to tackle this type of criminality.

"The investigation found that O’Donnell had made a significant amount of money from selling these illegally adapted firesticks and had done so over a number of years through Facebook and WhatsApp.

"Illegal streaming is far from a victimless crime, and as well as the impact it has on businesses and content creators, it essentially means that legitimate subscribers pay for those who illegally access such services.

"Illegal streams also increase the risk of users receiving malware, which can put them at increased risk of falling victim to Computer Misuse Act offences.

"We will use all available powers and continue to work with FACT to identify anyone else who is involved in this form of criminality and put them before the courts."