DODGY telly apps that allow Amazon Fire Stick owners to watch premium TV illegally will stop working from today.
Amazon has launched a major global crackdown on Fire Stick piracy that will see illegal streaming apps blocked.
The tech giant has been keeping illegal TV apps off its official Appstore for years.
But TV pirates get around this by “side-loading” apps onto Amazon Fire Sticks.
These unofficial apps – installed from outside of the Appstore – grant widespread access to premium telly, including top Hollywood movies and live sports.
But Amazon has confirmed to The Sun that it will now be blocking these side-loaded apps for the first time.
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“Piracy is illegal, and we’ve always worked to block it from our Appstore,” an Amazon spokesperson told The Sun.
“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.”
Regular Amazon Fire TV Sticks used for watching television legally won’t be affected.
They’ll still have access to legitimate apps like Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video and more.
But piracy apps will be blocked at the device level.
That means they’ll still be blocked even if TV pirates are using a VPN (Virtual Private Network) app to conceal their location and internet activity.
If an app has been identified as providing access to pirated content, it will no longer work.
It’s also important to note that Amazon isn’t blocking side-loading on existing Fire Sticks altogether.
The company says Fire Stick owners will still be able to install apps from outside of its official Appstore (although the new Fire TV Stick 4K Select doesn’t allow this after a change in the background).
But piracy apps will begin shutting down from today. The Sun understands that the block will roll out around the world, with early takedowns in France and Germany.
The crackdown is global, and will affect TV pirates in both the UK and US.
“While there will inevitably be some user backlash, streaming content illegally is against the law,” industry expert Paolo Pescatore told The Sun.
“But there is a broader problem: consumers are forced to pay escalating subscription fees to watch content.”
Paolo, tech analyst at PP Foresight, continued: “Broadcasters are spending more to secure live sports rights and passing these costs onto consumers who can’t afford them, leading to a messy, fragmented experience.
“The privacy problem can only be solved by a cohesive effort by everyone, from glass to glass, including telecom companies that own the pipe and block any potential illegal streams.”
This year, several TV giants have increased their prices, including Netflix, Disney+, and Apple TV+.
TV fans are increasingly facing higher streaming costs, and tougher decisions around which apps to keep paying for.
Paolo warned that “live sports and entertainment” are particularly attractive to pirates due to the cost of streaming them.
“All parties need to lobby regulators hard and improve takedown notices,” the tech expert explained.
“The need for immediate action during live events is critical, as delays can result in significant revenue losses, damaged reputations, and threats to consumers through cybercrime.”
Earlier this year, The Sun revealed the dangers of using so-called “dodgy Fire Sticks”.
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The fact that millions of Brits are turning to piracy isn’t a surprise.
Telly subscriptions are now wildly expensive, and it’s increasingly hard to justify having them all.
I mean a top-tier Netflix subscription will cost you £17.99 a month, while Disney+ comes in at £14.99 a month.
And the offering seems to be getting worse: Amazon now shows ads on your Prime Video movies and shows unless you pay extra (on top of your Prime membership) to remove them.
That’s an extra £2.99 on top of the regular £8.99 fee.
Netflix, meanwhile, just hiked prices in the US – and experts told The Sun that a UK rise is likely to follow.
And if you pay for Sky – and extra services like Sky Sports – then your costs will simply balloon.
So what are you to do?
Well one of the best strategies to cut your TV bills is to try something called “service cycling”.
That’s where you only have one TV service active at a time, and then rotate through a list.
So one month you pay for Netflix and watch all of its top telly.
Then scrap it and move on to Disney+ the next month, before binning that and going to Amazon for the third month.
Do this with three or four services then start the whole process over again.
It means you’ll get three or four months in each year to watch all of each app’s content.
So you won’t miss any top shows, but you’ll avoid paying for all of the apps every single month for an entire year.
It brings enormous savings and you won’t miss out on any great telly either.
Plus it’s totally legal, so you don’t have to worry about that.
Brits involved in TV piracy risk fines and even prison sentences.
And cyber-experts warned how criminals could use dodgy software on your devices to spy on your online activities, hijack devices in your home, and potentially even listen in on conversations.
Normally, Fire Sticks don’t allow piracy.
But The Sun found evidence of TV fans buying access to hacked apps packed with premium TV for as little as £50.
Dodgy devices in the UK typically set Brits back between £49 and £85 in exchange for a year of access to premium content.
In 2024, YouGov revealed that a quarter of people admitted they had pirated content.
And in 2023, one in 10 Brits confessed to watching an illegal sports broadcast in the last six months.
Earlier this year, The Sun spoke to anti-piracy group BeStreamWise, who issued a stark warning about piracy apps.
“By illegally streaming, people are opening themselves up to multiple risks, some of which include identity theft, fraud, viruses and dangerous malware,” a BeStreamWise spokesperson told The Sun.
“Illegal streaming sites, apps and devices are often used to deliver dangerous malware to the user’s device.
This then gives criminals access to users’ networks or devices, often in the background, allowing viewers to be scammed and opening them up to fraud or identity theft.
“The risk increases significantly when people exchange credit or debit card information to purchase a jailbroken device or subscription.
BRITAIN’S STREAMING BILLS
How much does it cost to stream telly in the UK?
You’ll pay a pretty penny if you want to watch all the most premium telly in Britain.
Here’s how much the top-tier subscriptions will set you back each month…
- Netflix Premium – £17.99
- Disney+ Premium – £14.99
- Amazon Prime Video without ads – £11.98
- Apple TV+ – £9.99
- Sky TV – £15
- Sky Sports – £20
- Sky Cinema – £10
- Paramount+ Premium – £10.99
And then there’s the BBC TV Licence Fee, which is currently £169.50 a year (equivalent to £14.13 a month).
If you were to have all of those services, it would come in at £125.07 a month – or a whopping £1,467.78 a year.
However your bill could be slightly less if you claimed Sky TV’s offer for a Standard-tier Netflix subscription with your plan.
These prices also don’t include any pay-per-view sports events that you might want to watch either.
Picture Credit: Netflix
“By sharing these details, consumers are giving criminals direct access to sensitive financial information.
“Devices that are connected to your TV and home network can give criminals 24-hour access to your data and beyond, without your knowledge.”
And Jamie Akhtar, of CyberSmart, issued a similar warning.
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“Dodgy Fire Sticks are often modified using third-party software and unofficial apps, which lack the rigorous security measures of legitimate platforms,” he told The Sun.
“Once installed, malicious software can collect personal information, monitor activity, or even provide remote access to cybercriminals.”
