Police Shut Down UK-Based Illegal IPTV Streaming Network That Made £3 Million After Sky Complaint

London, February 3, 2026 – UK police have dismantled a major illegal IPTV streaming operation based in the country, which generated over £3 million in illicit profits following a complaint from Sky. The network, part of a broader crackdown on pirate services, was shut down in a coordinated effort exposing its role in distributing pirated content from premium providers.

The operation stemmed from Sky's report of unauthorized broadcasting of its sports and entertainment channels. Investigators uncovered a sophisticated UK-headquartered syndicate that captured and retransmitted streams from Sky, DAZN, Mediaset, Amazon Prime, Netflix, Paramount, and Disney+. The group employed cryptocurrency payments and shell companies to launder money and evade taxes, serving millions of users globally.[1]

Key details of the takedown:

• The network operated at an industrial scale, with at least 100,000 subscribers in the UK and hundreds of resellers affected.
• Authorities seized servers, including those linked to international infrastructure in Romania and Africa.
• 31 members of the transnational criminal group face charges including copyright infringement, unauthorized computer access, fraud, and money laundering.
• The shutdown is linked to Operation Switch Off, a global initiative led by Europol, Eurojust, and Interpol, coordinated from Italy but extending to 14 countries.[1]

This action aligns with intensified 2025-2026 enforcement against IPTV piracy, where Europol traced €47 million in crypto transactions. The Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (ACE) praised the bust, noting similar takedowns of services like IPTVItalia, migliorIPTV, and DarkTV, which generated millions in monthly revenue.[1][2]

Police stated the infrastructure illegally served millions, disrupting access for end-users while targeting organized crime. No individual subscribers were prosecuted, but the operation signals escalating pressure on pirate networks amid advanced tracking of crypto and cross-border takedowns.[1][2]

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