Law enforcement units served notices to individuals in Essex, Hertfordshire, West Yorkshire and Pembrokeshire who were suspected of distributing illegal streaming services; to stop immediately. Police in the Eastern Region Special Operations Unit (ERSAU), West Yorkshire Police and Dyfed-Powys Police were supported by the Federation Against Copyright Theft (FACT) and the UK’s Government Agency Intelligence Network (GAIN), which focuses on organized crime groups.
Commenting in a prepared statement, David Hayes of West Yorkshire Police said “It was good to support FACT in West Yorkshire and we hope this collaboration will send out a clear message to those who think they can get away with it. We will find you.”
Read the FACT news release
Why it matters
FACT characterized the targeted individuals as being low level, but still, they were participating in operations that cause harm to creators, consumers and the media industry. “It’s important to remember that the public may be risking their personal and financial information by engaging with illegal services,” said Paul Sanders, GAIN coordinator with ERSAU. “We will continue to support FACT in their endeavours to prevent illegal content provision.”
Individual streamers sometimes don’t realize the impact of illegal services, nor are they aware of the forces allied against them. “We employ a range of tactics to prevent the provision of illegal streaming. Our continuous activity targets different elements of the global piracy landscape, with consideration given to the scale of the offending to ensure effective and proportionate action is taken,” said Kieron Sharp, Chief Executive of FACT.
