Telugu Film Industry Loses Rs 3,700 Crore Due to Piracy Gang, Say Cyber Crime Police

Hyderabad: The Telangana Cyber Crime Police have busted the country’s largest film piracy gang, which has caused massive losses to the Telugu film industry. Six members of the gang have been arrested, Hyderabad Commissioner of Police CV Anand revealed on Monday.

The gang reportedly pirated films in multiple languages, including Telugu, resulting in a total loss of Rs 3,700 crore for the industry. CP Anand said producers are facing severe financial damage due to these activities.

"Film piracy is happening through Telegram channels, torrent sites, and the new MO system. Gang members record films directly in theatres using cameras and even hack digital satellite signals. They then upload pirated content and earn income via advertisements on betting and gaming apps," he said.

The police investigation revealed that Jana Kiran Kumar is one of the main accused. He would record films in theatres using a high-end cellphone camera, hiding the device in his pocket or a popcorn box. The camera screen was kept off to avoid suspicion. Kiran’s gang has pirated 40 movies so far using a special app. The gang also has agents recording movies in other languages, and IP addresses from the Netherlands were used for piracy.

CP Anand said, "We used cutting-edge technology to catch the gang. The accused believed the police would never track them. They were shocked to learn how we solved the case. Kiran was earning around Rs nine lakh per month from betting apps linked to these pirated films."

The police have assured stricter surveillance in theatres and online platforms to curb piracy and protect the film industry from further losses.

Hyderabad CP CV Anand said that another accused in the movie piracy case, Ashwini Kumar from Patna, is an expert in hacking. He said that Ashwini has the expertise in hacking entire digital media servers.

"On some occasions, he also hacked government websites. He also hacked the Telangana State Election Commission website. He was able to hack government websites and get details of employees and salaries," the top police official said.

"Our team went to his house in Bihar. He installed 22 CCTV cameras in his house. He hacked the sites of several companies while sitting in Patna. The accused have made several companies suspicious of their employees. The main ones who are encouraging movie piracy are betting and gaming app administrators," CV Anand said.

He also said that if you click on the links on the piracy sites, all the user details will go to the piracy gang. He advised digital media houses to be careful in securing the film footage.

The CP explained that if there is a protection for the server, it will come through another route, and most of the movie piracy was done by the Kiran and Ashwani Kumar gang.