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Online piracy is traditionally associated with a young and tech-savvy audience, but that image doesn\u2019t always hold up. <\/p>\nOnline piracy is traditionally associated with a young and tech-savvy audience, but that image doesn\u2019t always hold up. <\/p>\n
Piracy has reached the masses with the help of online streaming and easy-to-use devices. In fact, it\u2019s now mainstream enough to have made it all the way to local flea markets. <\/p>\n
We\u2019re not talking about bootleg DVDs or CDs that have been sold under the counter for decades. No, we\u2019re referring to pirate streaming boxes and sticks that provide a portal into the world of streaming piracy. <\/p>\n
A few days ago, the Polk County Sheriff\u2019s Office<\/a> hosted a press conference<\/a> on the topic that offers a fascinating perspective on today\u2019s piracy landscape. <\/p>\n Addressing the local press, Sheriff Grady Judd announced that his department started a sting operation in October targeting sellers of \u2018pirate\u2019 Amazon Firesticks. The authorities were tipped off by a concerned citizen who noticed that these devices were being sold at the International Market World Flea Market near Auburndale.<\/p>\n The Polk County Sheriff Office picked this tip up and sent its detectives to the flea market to track down the alleged criminals. This eventually resulted in four arrests, with suspects ranging in age from 34 to 88. <\/p>\n Sheriff Judd informed the local press that the sellers were not particularly tech-minded and their descriptions don\u2019t fit the typical pirate profile either. For example, the 59-year-old Mrs. Yarborough usually makes her money selling custom cups, but offered \u2018jail broke\u2019 Firesticks on the side.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you don\u2019t want a custom cup she\u2019ll sell you a jail broke fire stick. She gets 100 dollars for the fire stick she doesn\u2019t charge any taxes,\u201d the Sheriff said. <\/p>\n This comment is confusing since Amazon Firesticks don\u2019t have to be jailbroken. The owner can simply toggle a switch to allow the installation of third-party software. However, the Police has a different definition of jailbreaking.<\/p>\n \u201cJail broken refers to modifying an electronic device with added software and plugins in such a way that it allows the user to view movies and TV shows they would have had to pay for,\u201d the Polk County Sheriff\u2019s office clarified.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n The 88-year-old Mr. Bongwoo Roe is the oldest of the targets. He could explain how the unauthorized Fire Sticks operate but didn\u2019t jailbreak them himself. Instead, he resold devices he purchased at the Webster flea market. <\/p>\n During the press release, police revealed some of the \u2018promotional\u2019 material used by the sellers. The \u2018ads\u2019 were not very sophisticated, but apparently quite effective. <\/p>\n The youngest defendant, Mr. Vazquez (34) did jailbreak the sticks himself. He is also the only one with a criminal history, according to Sheriff Judd, which means that he may be in more trouble than the others. <\/p>\n The 71-year-old Mrs. Holm is the final suspect. She is one of the most tech-savvy of the group and offered to jailbreak devices herself for $50.<\/p>\n \u201cHolm is probably one of the more technologically savvy of the group. She jailbreaks her own fire sticks but, being the all-purpose service kind of lady she is, if you take her your legal fire stick she\u2019ll break it for fifty dollars.<\/p>\n \u201cShe would also coach and counsel you. She recommends that you get a VPN so that the internet provider can\u2019t see just how much traffic you have and how much theft you\u2019re conducting,\u201d Sheriff Judd added.<\/p>\nUndercover Operation<\/h2>\n
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