11 arrests, hundreds of pirate websites, apps and domains blocked * TorrentFreak

In Brazil, the crackdown on pirate sites, IPTV services, infringing apps and other mechanisms that deliver illegal content to the masses continues to progress.

Following similar operations in previous years, including operations announced in August 2022, a new phase of Brazil’s “Operation 404” anti-piracy initiative was announced on Tuesday.

Operation 404.5 – Phase 5

The launch of Phase 5 of Operation 404 is described by Brazil’s Ministry of Justice and Public Security (MJSP) as an “international mobilization” coordinated by the MJSP through the National Secretariat of Public Security (Senasp) with the support of police in eight countries. States.

“The goal is to remove audio and video content such as games and music, block and suspend illegal streaming websites and apps, deindex content in search engines, and remove profiles and pages from social networks,” MJSP announced. read.

“In this phase 5, eleven people were arrested: four in São Paulo, two in Parana, one in Bahia and four in Minas Gerais,” the government ministry said.

Search and seizure warrants were executed to locate computer equipment in the states of Pernambuco, São Paulo, Paraná, Minas Gerais, Rio Grande do Sul, Bahia, Ceará and Rio de Janeiro.

According to the ministry, 199 illegal streaming and gaming sites and 63 music apps were also removed, in addition to blocking 128 domains.

A total of six “messaging app channels” with more than 4,000 subscribers were also banned for allegedly distributing unreleased music.

International cooperation

The local operation received significant international support. Authorities say they have worked with the UK Intellectual Property Crime Unit and the British Embassy, ​​Peru’s intellectual property protection agency INDECOPI, the Latin American anti-piracy organization MPA, the anti-piracy group Alianza and US-based Entertainment Software Alliance (ESA) with video game industry group.

TorrentFreak has received notification of visitors to seized websites and domains. In addition to the groups listed above, the participation of the UK Intellectual Property Office, Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment, Brazil-based music industry group APDIF and global music industry group IFPI is also revealed.

According to the latest data, the 404 action has led to the blocking of 1,974 websites and 783 apps since its inception in 2019. The names of websites and apps are never included in any material released to the public.

In a Justice Department press conference on Tuesday, there was a clear push to associate piracy sites with malware, and it was “certain” that people who download music or watch pirated streams will have their personal information exposed.

This led to a moment of unexpected dark humor (and worried faces) when a journalist suddenly mentioned a Globo report that claimed Brazil operated a secret system that could track the whereabouts of up to 10,000 people simply by entering their phone numbers.

Focus on pirated TV services

The main area of ​​focus for Brazilian authorities is the illegal TV market, which includes pirated IPTV services, illegal streaming websites and the flood of set-top boxes that have saturated the local market.

In an announcement published at the end of December 2022, Brazil’s National Film Agency (ANCINE) revealed a “reformulation” of its anti-piracy activities. Citing overlapping activities that risked straying into areas under the jurisdiction of the National Telecommunications Agency (ANATEL), ANCINE said it was “moving away” from actions targeting the TV piracy market.

Going forward, ANCINE said it will focus on protecting locally produced audiovisual works. As a result, technical cooperation with the Motion Picture Association in Latin America would end.

MPA’s participation in Operation 404 Phase 5 suggests that overall cooperation continued.

Earlier this year, ANATEL said that its work to disrupt the pirate TV market would continue through various means. For example, there is increased pressure on the sale of uncertified, unapproved set-top boxes, and a crackdown on illegal pay-TV services that distribute or otherwise rely on content over the Internet.

Following our report last summer that Brazil was visiting Portugal and Spain to learn more about their ISP blocking programs, we can confirm that these visits have taken place and that Brazil sees widespread blocking as a key weapon in the fight against piracy.

ANCINE and ANATEL announce a new partnership

After announcing the signing of a “Technical Cooperation Agreement” last week, it appears that ANCINE and ANATEL will work together to combat pirated TV services.

The agreement is for an initial period of 24 months and will monitor and monitor ANCINE’s piracy services. Based on ANCINE’s complaints, ANATEL is expected to issue instructions to ISPs to block services.

“With this exchange of information, ANCINE indicates the content transmitted illegally and ANATEL can ask to block the channel or pirate site,” says Moisés Moreira of ANATEL.

“The essence of this exchange of information is speed, because, for example, in a case involving a sports match, you have to be fast. It’s a different scenario than a website or a channel broadcasting a TV series, for example.”

Last month, ANATEL said it had already started blocking IP addresses to disrupt ‘gatonets’, the scrambling of pirated subscription TV services available through set-top decoders, IPTV devices and various software applications.

In a move to protect Japanese anime content, Brazilian authorities announced last month that they had shut down two of the region’s biggest anime piracy sites.