Italian Courts Order Seizure of Assets Linked to IPTV Piracy Operation

Italian authorities have uncovered an elaborate fraud involving the distribution of pirated content from Netflix, Sky, DAZN, and Mediaset. In addition to piracy, four individuals are suspected of money laundering.

According to rightsholders like Serie A, IPTV piracy has damaged Italian channels and streaming platforms.

The government is not oblivious to this, and in 2023, it passed a tough anti-piracy law to crack down on illegal IPTV services and customers.

The new law obligated internet service providers to block unlicensed IPTV services.

The authorities approached this differently by tracking the individuals behind these illegal services in the physical world.

A few days ago, financial and forensic experts followed the money trail to uncover the identities of four individuals in a “sophisticated fraud scheme.”

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Multi-Agency Investigation Uncovered An IPTV Reselling Scheme

The public prosecutor’s office in the southern city of Lecce gathered the best minds from various government sectors to uncover the identities of individuals involved in an IPTV reselling scheme. The IPTV service resold copyrighted content from DAZN, Netflix, Sky, and Mediaset by repackaging it into salable bundles that cost a fraction of the rightsholders’ charges.

Officers from Guardia di Finanza, a law enforcement agency under the Ministry of Economy and Finance, unraveled a complex syndicate profiting from illegal streaming.

The authorities believe one individual behind the operation sells the subscriptions in bulk to resellers, who then sell the packages (one-month credits) to customers at a higher price.

The mastermind operates a platform through which they rebroadcast encrypted content to streamers without any agreement with the rightsholders or legitimate distributors like DAZN and Netflix.

The Authorities Followed the Money Trail

Piracy sites often remain anonymous by investing in systems that hide their online activity and encrypt their data. They also use false information like names, contacts, email addresses, and IP addresses. This anonymity makes it hard for authorities to track them down.

The Italian authorities devised a way around this anonymity by following the money. The IPTV resellers were using prepaid Postepay payment cards, which Poste Italiane, the Italian post office, provides.

In theory, these payment cards must be registered to a person and a phone number. The IPTV customers paid for these payment cards after buying the illegal subscriptions. They allegedly topped up the cards directly in an attempt to stay discrete.

The authorities could trace these payment cards back to those reselling the pirated packages.

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The Money Was Invested-Uncovering Money Laundering

Like most people who obtain money through illegal activities, the individuals in this operation turned to real estate and other immovable assets to conceal the large amounts of money. By tying the money to assets like real estate, the individuals tried to hide the fact that these were the proceeds of a piracy ring.

The investigations uncovered that over 500,000 Euros were reinvested into various assets. They used banking records and other searches to follow the money trail and quantify the amount involved in the elaborate operation.

Court Orders Seizure of Assets

The district court in Lecce ordered the immediate seizure of assets linked to the IPTV piracy fraud operation. These include five real estate assets and two “vintage” vehicles. This was a preventative seizure to threaten and hopefully stop the piracy operation.

The suspects were also reported for alleged violations of copyright laws and money laundering. With this evidence, they will probably be charged in court to face the full force of the law. Italian laws on copyright infringement have had several amendments in the past year, with severe consequences.

The Investigations Will Continue

The Guardia di Finanza has revealed this is just the beginning of these investigations. IPTV and streaming piracy are widespread in Italy, and several content owners are losing big. According to a 2023 report, the global sports broadcasting sector loses $9.b billion to piracy.

It’s unclear whether the authorities will only target the distributors or the whole network, including customers and internet service providers. The 2023 antipiracy law made it clear that purchasing and consuming illegal content is punishable through automated fines.

Serious Fight Against Piracy

There has been a serious global fight against piracy in the past decade. Italy is not the only country fighting the vice from all fronts. In 2023, the UK sent a stern warning to pirated content streamers. Instead of sending warning letters via mail, the UK police will hand in the cease-and-desist notice in person.

Anti-piracy laws vary from country to country. While some European countries, like Italy and the UK, hold everyone accountable for illegal streaming, the US has yet to blame users or customers.

Final Thoughts

It will be interesting to watch how things unfold as more governments join this anti-piracy train. IPTV legality remains a problematic issue among users. What do you think is the future of IPTV services, especially third-party ones? Share your thoughts below.

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