IPTV Operators Tied to Organized Crime – Be Aware & Stay Safe

Did you know that many IPTV operators are tied to organized crime?

IPTV has always been a gray area for subscribers, developers, and law enforcement agencies.

This technology is oftentimes looked down on as many believe it provides “pirate streams” to subscribers and members.

While the term IPTV stands for “Internet Protocol Television”, most only think of IPTV as an illegal operation.

However, there are legal IPTV Services available that are still considered Internet Protocol Television that carry the proper licensing required for broadcasting.

Unfortunately, many IPTV Providers do operate illegally and some have even been tied to various organized crime operations.

These crimes include criminal copyright infringement, money laundering, fraud, and even human trafficking.

IPTV Wire always stresses the importance of using a VPN in conjunction with Unverified IPTV Providers and this will explain why.

Because the developers of Unverified IPTV Providers are unknown, it is impossible to determine what they may be doing with your data and information.

There have been multiple reports that explain some of the criminal activities associated with IPTV Providers and resellers.

Continue reading to learn more about these issues and what you can do to ensure your protection.

How IPTV Sellers Are Connected to Criminal Enterprises

An article featured in Forbes magazine presents evidence that IPTV Providers have connections to illicit dealings including human trafficking and arms dealing.

Because IPTV Providers oftentimes have numerous resellers, it can be difficult to determine the source of the illegal streams.

These resellers work as a third-party operation to simply “resell” the service and not provide the streams themselves.

Resellers do not go through a vetting process and may funnel money to organized crime including child trafficking, arms dealing, and computer fraud.

Anders Braf, CEO of anti-piracy organization Nordic Content Protection noted the following in the Forbes article:

The effects of hundreds of thousands of customers transferring funds on a monthly basis to organized crime groups is being underestimated. Due to their tremendous and continuous incoming flow of funds, those organizations support everything from human trafficking to arms trafficking. Even though the cooperation with law enforcement has been progressive, it seems that lawmakers in Sweden haven’t placed focus on following other Nordic countries and banning the purchase of IPTVs. Unfortunate promises to change those laws have not materialized for years, which is pretty discouraging.

Most resellers work as middlemen to transfer funds to other organizations/enterprises with no way of determining what they are used for.

You can read the entire Forbes article by clicking the link below.

Sweden: Up to 600,000 IPTV Users Support Human Trafficking Every Month – Forbes

Another report by the Digital Citizens Alliance and NAGRA explains the IPTV landscape as a billion-dollar industry with some high-end risks.

Money for Nothing: The Billion-Dollar Pirate Subscription IPTV Business

This includes risks for consumers who choose to purchase a subscription to these Unverified services.

The report aims to “raise alarms about how piracy poses personal and financial risk to consumers, from malware spread through pirate apps to distribution of unlawful content that may put viewers at risk”.

NAGRAS findings included a scheme in which IPTV subscribers “are turned over to others – who could potentially use them for illegal activities, such as accessing child pornography, committing fraud, or participating in cyber attacks”.

These are acts that could potentially be punishable by law for something the user did not commit.

What You Can Do

If you choose to use an Unverified IPTV Provider it is vital to protect yourself for numerous reasons.

1. The developers of these services are unknown and have access to your identifying IP Address and payment credentials
2. We cannot determine if they sell/transfer your data to 3rd parties
3. There is no way of knowing who has access to your information and sensitive data

The best way to ensure your protection with Unverified Services is by always first connecting to a VPN whenever visiting their site, or using their service.

It’s also extremely important to use a payment method such as PayPal, Bitcoin, or a prepaid credit card.  You NEVER want to provide credit card or bank information to any of these questionable operations.

We walk you through all of these important safety precautions in our free Ultimate IPTV Guide.

A VPN will encrypt and alter your identifying IP Address which will make you anonymous when connected to any app or service.

VPNs have hundreds of uses including protecting your data from Internet Service Providers, hackers, and government officials.

If you are using an IPTV Service or any service for that matter, you should protect your privacy by connecting to a VPN first.

IPTV Wire suggests Surfshark VPN which is popular among Firestick and Fire TV users.

You can use Surfshark on unlimited devices and they even back their service with a 30-day no-risk money-back guarantee.

You can save on a Surfshark subscription with the IPTV Wire exclusive discount below.

Surfshark VPN Exclusive Discount