Gandhinagar: In a major cyber crime crackdown, the State Cyber Cell has arrested a man from Jalandhar for allegedly streaming Jio Hotstar content illegally via an unauthorized IPTV app. The case surfaced after Jio Hotstar lodged a complaint stating that some individuals were broadcasting its content through a third-party IPTV Android application.

According to police, the IPTV app was available for Android phones and had been downloaded by around 50 lakh people. The investigation revealed that the app was developed by one Mohammad Murtaza Ali, who originally hails from Bihar but was living in Jalandhar. The accused hosted not only Indian channels but also content from across the world, including several Pakistani TV channels. Authorities suspect that some of these channels had the potential to spread radical content, prompting a deeper investigation into the app’s operations.

During the raid, police seized 3 hard disks, 3 laptops, 9 mobile phones, 12 passbooks, 9 debit cards, memory cards, and video-capturing devices from the accused. Officials also found that the app utilized multiple servers to distribute content and are currently tracking server locations and analyzing streaming URLs to identify the scope of the piracy. The probe continues to determine if the app’s content was used for spreading propaganda or inciting unrest. DeshGujarat