Singapore – Singapore’s High Court has ordered to block 22 illegal streaming sites and 70 related domains, strengthening its anti-piracy efforts in the country.
The Court order follows major entertainment players’ push for a crackdown on illegal streaming sites. Among the entities who sought and obtained the order includes BBC Studios, the Premier League, DFL Deutsche Fußball Liga and LALIGA.
Recently, the Premier League obtained a similar order to actively block the illegal distribution of content in Singapore.
The Asia Video Industry Association’s Coalition Against Piracy (CAP) welcomes the latest order, strengthening its broader campaign against piracy. CAP is working on providing an in-depth analysis of piracy trends and raising awareness of its dangers to consumers.
“There is now extensive evidence of the links between piracy services and consumer harm, including risks of malware infection, identity theft and viruses. A 2024 study undertaken showed that consumers accessing pirate sites in Singapore are nearly four times more likely to be exposed to a cyber threat compared to a mainstream site, and blocking access to piracy services is a great step in preventing this type of harm,” Matt Cheetham, CAP’s general manager, said.
“Recent research has also shown that piracy services could have wider potential harm, with illegal streaming devices (ISDs) shown to be riddled with compromised apps and pre-installed malware targeting personal data. These devices can be remotely hijacked and potentially used for more widespread attacks on other devices and broader networks,” Cheetham added.
