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UK police have arrested two people and seized several servers in coordinated raids targeting illegal IPTV services.
Two Arrested by UK Police in IPTV Raids
The Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) conducted raids last Thursday, arresting a 30-year-old man and 32-year-old woman near Birmingham. Police believe the man operated an unnamed IPTV service distributing Sky content without authorization.
Both suspects face copyright offense charges, with the woman also suspected of receiving criminal property. PIPCU investigators say the pair made “significant profits” from their illegal operation.
The raids extended to a commercial datacenter in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, where officers seized seven servers. PIPCU believes this seizure “caused major disruption” to multiple pirate services operating from the facility.
Police posted photos of the seized Supermicro servers on social media but withheld the datacenter’s specific name and location. The facility sits about 50 miles south of the Birmingham arrest locations.
Connection to Previous IPTV Operations
This latest raid may connect to previous PIPCU operations from last October. Close examination of photos suggests potential links between the Cheltenham facility and a Wolverhampton datacenter raided last year.
PIPCU has blurred identifying information in recent images, but circumstantial evidence points to possible connections between the operations. Cases from the October raids have not yet reached court.
Sky’s Group Director of Anti-Piracy Matt Hibbert thanked PIPCU for their actions and commented the following:
“We are extremely grateful to the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit for taking this action against a significant pirate operation. We will continue to work alongside the police and industry partners to tackle piracy and disrupt the criminal networks behind it. This action helps to keep consumers safe from the serious risks that piracy can pose to devices and personal property.”
Final Thoughts
These coordinated raids demonstrate continued pressure on illegal IPTV operations in the UK, but they won’t be the last as authorities ramp up enforcement efforts.
While this operation disrupted multiple services, similar criminal enterprises continue operating through other data centers across the country.
Perhaps Sky and other content providers should consider making their services more affordable to reduce demand for illegal alternatives.
For more information on this story refer to the press release from the City of London Police and the report from TorrentFreak.
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