Police in Germany have seized 50,000 Bitcoins, worth more than $2.1 billion, from the former operator of the pirate site movie2k. The process was done through a voluntary deposit into a state-controlled wallet.
Movie2k.to was a platform that operated between 2008 and 2013 offering links to stream or download movies and TV shows to users (mainly English and German speakers).
Movie2k was a pirate site and was therefore targeted by authorities and various entertainment, resulting in multiple ISP-level blockings and frequent changes of web domains.
See also: Pirated macOS apps drain users' wallets
The original Movie2k.to was taken down around May 2013, following legal action by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA).
With the help of the FBI, German authorities continued to investigate the identities of the operators behind the original platform, eventually identifying a 40-year-old German and a 37-year-old Polish man. Police said one of the two suspects voluntarily transferred Bitcoin to the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA). The funds are believed to have been obtained from Movie2k’s profits ( such as advertising revenue and membership fees).
The platform's operators began exchanging fiat money for Bitcoin in mid-2012, either as an investment option or fearing the risks of operating a pirate platform, assuming that cryptocurrencies would be harder to track and seize.
See also: Visits to pirate sites have increased significantly in recent years
Pirate site operators use Bitcoin to conduct transactions without revealing identities .
However, despite the anonymity that Bitcoin provides, authorities are able to track scammers and associate a Bitcoin address with an individual.
The police report that the defendant voluntarily transferred the Bitcoins to wallets provided by the BKA and the final decision on the use of this significant amount is pending.
See also: Austria: Authorities arrested 20 people connected to a pirate IPTV network
According to German news website TarnKappe, one of the two suspects was also linked to "mega-downloads.net".
The seizure and arrests of pirate site operators show that governments and authorities are determined to stop the fraudsters. Governments are working with internet service providers to identify and block pirated websites. This is done through processes such as the use of content recognition technologies and the implementation of filtering techniques.
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Governments are also investing in education and public awareness about the consequences of piracy. This may include information campaigns, training programs, and other initiatives aimed at enhancing public understanding of the value of copyright.
Source: www.bleepingcomputer.com
