Europol operation dismantles 9 illegal streaming crime groups, nets 29 arrests

Illegal streaming networks - sometimes called IPTV piracy services - have grown into a significant target for European law enforcement over the past several years. These operations typically sell subscription access to pirated sports, film, and television content, undercutting licensed broadcasters. Europol has run successive coordinated actions against such networks, with Operation Kratos 2 representing an escalation in arrest numbers and groups dismantled. The entertainment and broadcast industry has lobbied regulators across Europe to treat piracy infrastructure as organized crime rather than a civil matter, a framing that appears reflected in the scale and cross-border coordination of this latest action.