Amazon’s Fire TV Sticks used for ‘industrial scale’ piracy, study reveals

According to a report by Enders Analysis, Amazon streaming devices such as the Fire TV Stick are increasingly being used for piracy. Research shows that more than half of all people in the UK who have used illegal streaming services this year have done so using an Amazon product.

This is piracy on an “industrial scale,” with Amazon being accused of enabling the consumption of pirated content through inaction and weak security measures. A complete overhaul of Fire TV Sticks is necessary to prevent illegal use, according to Enders Analysis.

How are Fire TV Sticks used illegally?

Amazon’s Fire TV Stick is meant to provide quick plug-and-play access to streaming services such as Prime Video and Netflix, with users merely needing to plug the device in a TV’s HDMI port to get it working. With simple modifications, however, the device can also be used to access illegal live streams from paid TV providers and sports networks.

To make matters worse, these modified Fire TV Sticks can apparently be purchased for quite cheap on the black market. Last year, for example, several men were caught and sentenced to prison for selling such modified streaming devices, as reported by The Independent.

Despite TV networks and streaming services losing billions in revenue every year due to this and similar practices, some still think that companies like Amazon aren’t treating the issue seriously enough.

How does Amazon feel about it?

In a statement, Amazon told The Independent that it was “vigilant in [their] efforts to combat piracy” and had already “made changes to Fire Sticks to deter people from streaming illegal content.”

“Pirated content violates our policies regarding intellectual property rights, and compromises the security and privacy of our customers,” said the Amazon spokesperson.

Nevertheless, cases of piracy still seem to be occurring and some studies show that more and more users are consuming illegal streaming content, particularly in Europe.

Google, Microsoft, Meta also under fire

Amazon isn’t the only company to be criticized, with other major technology companies—including Google, Microsoft and Meta—also named in the report. They’re accused of contributing to the problem, primarily through inaction. How exactly content providers should tackle the growing piracy problem remains unclear, however.

Above all, perhaps the real issue is that legitimate users of streaming services are faced with a fragmented market and rising prices, which seems to be making piracy more attractive again. That said, just because piracy is convenient and inexpensive doesn’t mean it’s okay. Would-be pirates should remember that copyright infringement is a crime.