Major change to ‘dodgy’ Amazon Fire Sticks to block illegal streaming from today

Watching unofficial content with an Amazon fire stick just got more difficult after the company geared up its fight against piracy with a new update.

The tech giant has dealt a major blow to those who use their fire stick to avoid paying for content like premium sports matches and films with its latest update.

As of today, Amazon will reportedly block apps suspected of facilitating illegal streaming.

The latest model blocks users from ‘sideloading apps’, which is when they manually download apps outside of the official store.

Earlier this month, a cybersecurity expert told Metro that the modified Android apps powering ‘dodgy Firesticks’ simply won’t work anymore.

An Amazon spokesperson said: ‘Piracy is illegal, and we’ve always worked to block it from our Appstore.

‘Through an expanded program led by the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (ACE), a global coalition fighting digital piracy, we’ll now block apps identified as providing access to pirated content, including those downloaded from outside our Appstore.

‘This builds on our ongoing efforts to support creators and protect customers, as piracy can also expose users to malware, viruses, and fraud.’

No VPNs allowed on new Fire TV

But it has now emerged that this isn’t the only thing making streamers’ lives more difficult.

The Fire TV 4K Select, which launched this month for £49.99, also doesn’t allow the use of VPNs – at least, not yet.

This means users will be blocked from hiding their identity and location, which allows them to avoid detection from internet service providers, and avoid geo-restrictions where content is not available in certain regions.

Amazon is expected to make this function available with a software update soon, but a date has not yet been given.

A spokesperson for NordVPN, one of the most popular models on the market, told Metro: ‘At initial retail availability it will be running Vega OS and won’t support VPN apps, so NordVPN won’t be available in the App Store on day one.

‘However, Amazon plans to enable VPN protocols via a software update in the coming weeks.

‘Our app is ready, and we’ll make it available in the Amazon Appstore for the new Fire TV devices as soon as that update goes live.’

VPNs have many legitimate uses for privacy and security, such as avoiding tracking and censorship.

But they are also a key tool used by those accessing pirated content, something which has been a thorn in the side for Amazon, with some football fans bragging about the ease of using their devices to avoid paying for matches.

Unlike the older models which run on Fire OS, built on an open Android system, the latest fire stick has an in-house operating system built on Linux, called Vega.

This means that the old apps people were using to stream copyrighted content won’t work, and new ones won’t be able to be built either.

Older models of the Fire Stick still work with VPNs as normal, but the move signals that future models are also likely going to be harder to pirate content with.

Marijus Briedis, chief technology officer at NordVPN, told Metro that technical difficulties loading the apps were not the only reason dodgy streamers should be worried.

He said: ‘Most people are now aware of the dangers of criminals accessing our mobile phones and PCs and have some form of protection to minimise the risks of falling victim to hackers. 

‘Something like your TV, or a streaming device, are much less likely to have any protections and can be a less obvious entry point for cyber attacks. 

‘Much to the anger of streaming companies, including Amazon itself, their Fire Sticks are often corrupted to become ‘dodgy boxes’ that allow users to access multiple services and PPV channels for free.

‘Little do Brits know the security implications of having one of these, let alone the legal issues that could follow.’

Authorities are also increasing concerned by the prevalence of pirated content on fire sticks.

Last year, Jonathan Edge, 29, from Liverpool, received a three-year jail term for selling and using illegal fire sticks.

The organisation sent him cease and desist letters but he carried on, leading to the Premier League taking him to court.

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