As cryptocurrency emerges as one of the payment methods for illicit IPTV and streaming services, the audiovisual and crypto industries have united with law enforcement to strike back. A week-long international operation brought together major industry players to identify and disrupt criminal networks using digital currencies to fund piracy and launder proceeds from illegal streaming.
Led by Europol’s IPC3 Unit in collaboration with the EUIPO, the initiative was supported by the Premier League and Irdeto – representing the Audiovisual Anti-Piracy Alliance (AAPA) – alongside leading cryptocurrency exchanges Coinbase and Binance, and blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis. Law enforcement officers from over 15 European countries took part in the coordinated “crypto sprint,” focused on tracing and dismantling financial channels that sustain digital piracy.
The initiative leveraged Chainalysis’s advanced blockchain intelligence tools to map the flow of illicit funds and reveal the networks behind criminal operations. Using Chainalysis Reactor, Irdeto investigators traced complex money-laundering patterns, uncovering links between pirate operators, payment intermediaries and consumers of illegal content.
Maltego Graph (Desktop) was used to enable investigators to visualise the data to spotlight and identify data connections and patterns in an intuitive and holistic way.
“The intelligence shows that cryptocurrency has fast become a new payment method used by digital pirates,” commented Mark Mulready, Vice President of Cyber Services at Irdeto. “This operation marks a turning point in how we combat piracy by cutting off the payment mechanisms that fuel illicit services and striking at the very heart of their business model”.
Both Coinbase and Binance acted on the intelligence from the operation. Their efforts prevented further abuse of their services by users linked to piracy networks, thereby reinforcing the integrity of their platforms.
“This joint effort underscores the importance and power of public and private collaboration in tackling digital crime, which has been integral to our work at Binance,” said EMEA Head of Investigations Lilija Mazeikiene. “It also highlights how crime cannot easily hide on the blockchain, where the pseudo-anonymous nature of crypto makes illicit transactions easier to uncover than cash and other forms of payment. Digital pirates will soon realise that crypto will make it harder for them to hide.”
“We welcome opportunities to collaborate closely with law enforcement and trusted partners. Crypto leaves a visible record, and when we combine that transparency with strong compliance controls, we can disrupt criminal activity that seeks to exploit digital payments,” stated Nick Wright, Manager of Global Intelligence, EMEA at Coinbase.
“Working alongside partners and leaders across the industry to uncover and visualise illicit IPTV networks of operators shows the real value of cross-sector collaboration,” said Sergio Leal, Senior Principal Subject Matter Expert at Maltego. “When technology, law enforcement, and private organisations join forces, we can solve cases faster and create a more secure society.”
“Chainalysis is honoured to be a part of this powerful blueprint for tackling modern digital crime. IPTV operators turn to cryptocurrency for the same reasons legitimate users do: its speed, liquidity, and borderless nature. However, this operation demonstrates that the inherent transparency of the blockchain combined with our on-chain intelligence and decisive action from industry collaborators and law enforcement leaves nowhere for illicit funds to hide. By exposing the financial operations behind these criminal networks, this initiative has taken a great step forward in disrupting these illegal markets,” said Jonathan Levin, Co-Founder and CEO, Chainalysis.
The Cyber Patrol Results include:
- 69 sites identified and targeted.
- 25 illicit IPTV services were referred to the participating crypto service providers for disruption.
- Investigations are ongoing for 44 additional sites at various stages.
- The combined estimated annual traffic for these 69 sites is approximately 11,821,006.
- Cryptocurrency valued at an estimated $55,000,000 has been traced through various accounts associated with these services.
- Several of these services remain under continued investigation by both public and private entities.
“Partnerships like this are essential to protecting both content creators and consumers,” added Miruna Herovanu, AAPA Executive Director. “When industries and governments collaborate, we send a clear message: piracy will not pay.”