PrimeStreams Pirate IPTV Provider Extorted by Hackers for $70K
- PrimeStreams is in trouble, as a hacker has accessed its billing database and threatens to make the sensitive information public.
- If that happens, the website owners, subscribers, and resellers would face prosecution by the authorities.
- Reportedly, Helix has paid the ransom, and PrimeStreams is likely to do the same too - being targeted by the same hacker.
The pirate IPTV service provider known as "PrimeStreams" is being blackmailed by the same hacker who extorted Helix Hosting last week. According to the website’s team, the hacker demands a payment of $70K in Bitcoin, otherwise, the platform’s billing panel database will be made public. This would expose the subscribers and the resellers of this IPTV service, which would put them into the trouble of facing the legal consequences. The unauthorized access to these databases has been confirmed, so the hacker is really in a position to realize the threats.
The attacker has managed to crack a password on the service’s billing panel and even left a ticket urging the admins to reset it. The administrator offered the hacker a free account, thinking that this was just a kind gesture from the hacker's side, intended to help this IPTV service fix a security mistake. However, this was a mistake that is going to cost them $70K, as the hacker is not pleased with the proposed gift. Instead, he threatens to publicize 121,000 active subscriptions, with each entry comprising of the username, email address, IP address history, and payment data. While the users are unlikely to have provided real names and addresses for these services, this information can be usually deduced from the rest of the available data.
PrimeStreams is definitely asking new subscribers for much more information than a pirate IPTV service platform should, and they haven't taken the required measures to protect that data responsibly. The worst part is that the payment methods that are supported by PrimeStreams are all connected to people’s real identities, and these are PayPal, Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express. If the platform supported crypto-payments, its subscribers would be better protected from a hacking attempt like this one.
Whether or not the admins are willing to pay $70K remains unclear right now, and as always, paying the amount guarantees nothing anyway. According to unconfirmed rumors, Helix has paid the ransom after the hacker started to gradually leak information on the Web. The only certain thing is that these attacks will continue, as the choice between paying a few thousand dollars or going to jail is pretty straightforward for the admins of these platforms. As for the users, you should be extra careful with the information that you fill out via subscription forms, or even better - entirely avoid platforms that don’t accept anonymous payment methods.
Are you worried about your IPTV subscription information being leaked online in the future, or do you consider the benefits to be worth the risk? Let us know where you stand in the comments section below, or join the discussion on our socials, on Facebook and Twitter.